Another great night's sleep and today I was ready to put up tile. As I began I realized that I was missing a few things so off to the hardware store. Back at it again when Mrs. FogDog suggested a minor change in the design... back to the hardware store. By the time I was ready to tile, it was already 1PM.
I'm doing well with the eating, but I haven't been carb cycling. I'm so caught up in my remodel that I'm just eating 3 meals a day and trying to drink as much water as I can. I'm sure I've lost some weight with all the work I've been doing.
Anyway, I'm tired so it's off to bed, more tile work tomorrow.
Stay Strong!
Showing posts with label carb cycling. Show all posts
Showing posts with label carb cycling. Show all posts
Thursday, March 12, 2015
Tuesday, March 3, 2015
Day #58 - Quiet Success
The last two days have been quite successful. I've managed to eat nothing but healthy food and on both days I've gotten my gallon of water in. It's interesting I read a lot of people that talk about struggles with drinking water, but that's never really been a problem for me. My wife says I'm like a water buffalo. I find that I have my best success comes when I drink a lot of water each day. I've actually noticed that I can eat the same amount of calories from week to week, but see vastly different results depending on how much water I drink.
Anyway, I titled this post "quiet success" because that's how it feels right now. No big hoopla about starting a diet, in fact I'm not even sure you call it a diet; I'm just focused on eating healthy foods. No counting calories; it feels a little weird like I'm not really doing anything. But I know I am; just after a few days of eating healthy I feel better.
Today was my second day of no carbs (except for at breakfast). Tomorrow is a full carb day so I'm looking forward to getting a little more fruit in tomorrow. The last time I did carb cycling I noticed I was a little tired by the end of the second no carb day. Today is no exception; I fell a little run down tonight so I think I'll get to bed early.
Still hanging one day at a time, Day #58 is over; on to day #59.
Stay Strong!
Anyway, I titled this post "quiet success" because that's how it feels right now. No big hoopla about starting a diet, in fact I'm not even sure you call it a diet; I'm just focused on eating healthy foods. No counting calories; it feels a little weird like I'm not really doing anything. But I know I am; just after a few days of eating healthy I feel better.
Today was my second day of no carbs (except for at breakfast). Tomorrow is a full carb day so I'm looking forward to getting a little more fruit in tomorrow. The last time I did carb cycling I noticed I was a little tired by the end of the second no carb day. Today is no exception; I fell a little run down tonight so I think I'll get to bed early.
Still hanging one day at a time, Day #58 is over; on to day #59.
Stay Strong!
Wednesday, February 25, 2015
Day #52 - Healthy Eating Kick
It was only a few days ago that I was writing about needing to get started eating healthier. At the time I just felt plain lousy! I was sluggish and my brain just wasn't working right. At one point I drove right past my turn to go home.
Fast forward just a few days of eating healthier and I can literally feel the difference. I didn't even change too much, mostly just tried to get more fruits and vegetables and drink a little more water, but the effects of healthy eating have started to kick in.
I've noticed as I've gotten older I can feel a big difference if I don't eat right or if I don't get enough sleep. I wonder if it's because you become more in tune with how you feel as you age or is it simply that there's not much of a difference when you are younger; you can just ride through it?
Regardless I definitely feel better after just a couple days and I'm really excited to get back to carb cycling here at the end of the month. Final preparations are being made and I'm interested to see how this first month will pan out since I won't be counting calories or focusing on portion control (or even weighing myself for that matter). My thinking is that I might not lose a ton of weight, but at the same time it would be difficult to maintain or gain weight if I'm eating too much spinach or if I choose to have an extra 1/4 cup of oatmeal in the morning with extra blueberries. I'm pretty sure I can stuff my face with healthy food like baby carrots and not end up feeling lethargic and bloated.
Out with the old (Day #52) and in with the new (Day #53).
Stay Strong!
Fast forward just a few days of eating healthier and I can literally feel the difference. I didn't even change too much, mostly just tried to get more fruits and vegetables and drink a little more water, but the effects of healthy eating have started to kick in.
I've noticed as I've gotten older I can feel a big difference if I don't eat right or if I don't get enough sleep. I wonder if it's because you become more in tune with how you feel as you age or is it simply that there's not much of a difference when you are younger; you can just ride through it?
Regardless I definitely feel better after just a couple days and I'm really excited to get back to carb cycling here at the end of the month. Final preparations are being made and I'm interested to see how this first month will pan out since I won't be counting calories or focusing on portion control (or even weighing myself for that matter). My thinking is that I might not lose a ton of weight, but at the same time it would be difficult to maintain or gain weight if I'm eating too much spinach or if I choose to have an extra 1/4 cup of oatmeal in the morning with extra blueberries. I'm pretty sure I can stuff my face with healthy food like baby carrots and not end up feeling lethargic and bloated.
Out with the old (Day #52) and in with the new (Day #53).
Stay Strong!
Sunday, February 22, 2015
Day #49 - Sometime in August
Today marks a full weekend without alcohol! Mrs. FogDog and I were trying to remember the last time we went an entire weekend without a single drink. By our best guess we think it was in August very shortly after we had moved in to our new home. Really? 6 months? What was the point? Yeah it helped me to relax a little, but it's not like smoking where I had a physical addiction... or was it?
I've always told myself that it was merely habit and I still think that way, but maybe there was some physical need in the background. I haven't noticed any irritability or struggle with not drinking this weekend, but I certainly thought about it a couple times.
Anyway, physical or just habit, the weekend ritual has been interrupted. Now What?
I mentioned a few posts back that I was considering a hardcore March on the weight loss front. I was thinking going for the gold and trying to lose 30 pounds in 30 days. Like all my decisions about improving my health I decided to think about it for a while before making a decision.
After giving it some thought I came to realize that 30 pounds in 30 days was "old me" thinking. You see, everything I've done so far has been highly beneficial toward my overall journey, but none of it has provided and physical or outward change. 30 pounds in 30 days would give me the "hey look at me" activity that would shock some people.
Who am I trying to impress anyway? I don't need to put on some display of weight loss ability. For starters, it's not sustainable, just go back and look at my history of going all-in only to burn out afterward. No, I don't need that right now, right now I need another step in the right direction.
I am going to restart my carb cycling in March because I found it be reasonable to do, but I'm not going to add more exercise than I'm already getting. I'll weigh myself at the start of the month and my goal is to simply lose 10 pounds by the end. That's a respectable number without making me feel like I have to be perfect everyday.
Anyway, Day #49 is now in the books. I can't believe that I'm already up to day #50 tomorrow.
Stay Strong!
I've always told myself that it was merely habit and I still think that way, but maybe there was some physical need in the background. I haven't noticed any irritability or struggle with not drinking this weekend, but I certainly thought about it a couple times.
Anyway, physical or just habit, the weekend ritual has been interrupted. Now What?
I mentioned a few posts back that I was considering a hardcore March on the weight loss front. I was thinking going for the gold and trying to lose 30 pounds in 30 days. Like all my decisions about improving my health I decided to think about it for a while before making a decision.
After giving it some thought I came to realize that 30 pounds in 30 days was "old me" thinking. You see, everything I've done so far has been highly beneficial toward my overall journey, but none of it has provided and physical or outward change. 30 pounds in 30 days would give me the "hey look at me" activity that would shock some people.
Who am I trying to impress anyway? I don't need to put on some display of weight loss ability. For starters, it's not sustainable, just go back and look at my history of going all-in only to burn out afterward. No, I don't need that right now, right now I need another step in the right direction.
I am going to restart my carb cycling in March because I found it be reasonable to do, but I'm not going to add more exercise than I'm already getting. I'll weigh myself at the start of the month and my goal is to simply lose 10 pounds by the end. That's a respectable number without making me feel like I have to be perfect everyday.
Anyway, Day #49 is now in the books. I can't believe that I'm already up to day #50 tomorrow.
Stay Strong!
Wednesday, February 18, 2015
Day #45 - My Own March Madness
Today was just another stressful day. There's no doubt I'm a little more short tempered at work since I quit smoking. Quitting drinking isn't going to help either. You know what though... I really don't care. I'm not going to smoke or drink or overeat just so I'll be more likely to spare people's feelings. To be honest I'm starting to wonder if I was a little too nice to people and most took advantage of it.
Anyway, not what I really wanted to talk about. I know that I'm taking this journey day by day, but I couldn't help to think forward a little towards March. By March I will have quite smoking for almost 2 months and I will have quit drinking for several weeks. If I want to have a chance at 100 pounds lost this year (my third and final goal) I feel like I'm going to need to add more focus to weight loss. So far I'm trying to contain the damage while I focus on the smoking (and now the drinking), but I have to start sometime. So far I've only lost about 5 pounds.
I'm thinking about dedicating March towards getting back on my carb cycling diet. I figure if I go hard all month I could probably drop about 30 pounds especially since I'm taking a week off during the month to remodel my bathroom and bedroom; activities that will require some hard physical labor. I also think it's a good time as spring begins to show signs of coming and my mood generally improves when that happens.
Like the rest of this journey I'm actually thinking things through instead of just making arbitrary decisions. There are some pros and cons to doing my own "March Madness":
Potential Benefits
A successfully 30 day stint could jumpstart my weight loss and help carry me through the year. 30 pounds (or even close to 30 pounds) would be noticeable and help boost my confidence. Additionally, shifting focus away from smoking and drinking could be a welcome distraction and adding exercise to my already busy routine could prove to be a stress reliever. I have no big projects or travel plans so the month of March would be a good one to start.
Potential Drawbacks
Even if I'm successful, it could backfire on me if I feel burned out afterward and go right back to eating like a pig. I might lose a bunch of weight in March only to gain it back and get depressed in April. Also, I have to ask myself if I'm ready to add the weight loss burden. Worse than not losing weight would be if I fell off the smoking wagon in the process. That would hurt me mentally right now.
March might be a little too soon, but then again I might be giving myself excuses and not pushing it a little. I know that I do much better when I get out of my comfort zone.
Anyway, I still have another full week next week to think about it. Leave me a comment and tell me what you think.
Stay Strong!
Anyway, not what I really wanted to talk about. I know that I'm taking this journey day by day, but I couldn't help to think forward a little towards March. By March I will have quite smoking for almost 2 months and I will have quit drinking for several weeks. If I want to have a chance at 100 pounds lost this year (my third and final goal) I feel like I'm going to need to add more focus to weight loss. So far I'm trying to contain the damage while I focus on the smoking (and now the drinking), but I have to start sometime. So far I've only lost about 5 pounds.
I'm thinking about dedicating March towards getting back on my carb cycling diet. I figure if I go hard all month I could probably drop about 30 pounds especially since I'm taking a week off during the month to remodel my bathroom and bedroom; activities that will require some hard physical labor. I also think it's a good time as spring begins to show signs of coming and my mood generally improves when that happens.
Like the rest of this journey I'm actually thinking things through instead of just making arbitrary decisions. There are some pros and cons to doing my own "March Madness":
Potential Benefits
A successfully 30 day stint could jumpstart my weight loss and help carry me through the year. 30 pounds (or even close to 30 pounds) would be noticeable and help boost my confidence. Additionally, shifting focus away from smoking and drinking could be a welcome distraction and adding exercise to my already busy routine could prove to be a stress reliever. I have no big projects or travel plans so the month of March would be a good one to start.
Potential Drawbacks
Even if I'm successful, it could backfire on me if I feel burned out afterward and go right back to eating like a pig. I might lose a bunch of weight in March only to gain it back and get depressed in April. Also, I have to ask myself if I'm ready to add the weight loss burden. Worse than not losing weight would be if I fell off the smoking wagon in the process. That would hurt me mentally right now.
March might be a little too soon, but then again I might be giving myself excuses and not pushing it a little. I know that I do much better when I get out of my comfort zone.
Anyway, I still have another full week next week to think about it. Leave me a comment and tell me what you think.
Stay Strong!
Sunday, January 4, 2015
New Year, New Title, New Me
It’s been a while since I posted. Simply put, I fell apart again. I got on the scale this morning and I’m right
back where I started… 346 pounds. I don’t
feel guilty about it and I’m not depressed, it is what it is. I am responsible for my actions and I am
responsible for getting myself out of this unhealthy trend.
I’ve been on vacation since Christmas Eve; that’s a lot of time to think. I feel like 2014 was a bit of a turning point for me in terms of my mental state. I made significant progress with being in tune with how I feel and I’ve learned to forgive myself for not being perfect instead of carrying around a bunch of guilt. With that said, my physical health has not improved at all. In fact at 42 I’m starting to feel the toll of being unhealthy. I’m tired all the time! On weekends I can’t make it through a day without getting some kind of a nap or rest period. When we go somewhere that requires any amount of walking I get tired out within the first hour and then spend the rest of the time walking from rest spot to rest spot. This is not what I expected to feel like in my 40s and I shudder at the thought of how I will feel in my 50s.
With my new mindset I’m ready to take my next step. I’m dedicating this entire year towards making my health my #1 priority. I changed my blog title to match my new commitment. Over the next 360 days I’m going to do a 180 and turn my health around. It’s going to be tough and there will be plenty of failures along the way, but with each failure I will pick myself up as fast as possible and get right back on track. I’m setting 3 basic goals for the year:
Sounds so simple right? Anyone who’s had any kind of success with improving their health knows that this will be anything but simple. It’s going to be one of the toughest years I’ve had to go through, but it beats the alternative of sitting around on December 31st thinking about how I wasted another year and how my health has deteriorated that much further. I’ve made a promise to myself that 2015 will be the year that I make my health a priority. It’s a promise that I intend to keep. I’m going to do a 180 in the next 360! Day #1 is tomorrow; wish me luck!
I’ve been on vacation since Christmas Eve; that’s a lot of time to think. I feel like 2014 was a bit of a turning point for me in terms of my mental state. I made significant progress with being in tune with how I feel and I’ve learned to forgive myself for not being perfect instead of carrying around a bunch of guilt. With that said, my physical health has not improved at all. In fact at 42 I’m starting to feel the toll of being unhealthy. I’m tired all the time! On weekends I can’t make it through a day without getting some kind of a nap or rest period. When we go somewhere that requires any amount of walking I get tired out within the first hour and then spend the rest of the time walking from rest spot to rest spot. This is not what I expected to feel like in my 40s and I shudder at the thought of how I will feel in my 50s.
With my new mindset I’m ready to take my next step. I’m dedicating this entire year towards making my health my #1 priority. I changed my blog title to match my new commitment. Over the next 360 days I’m going to do a 180 and turn my health around. It’s going to be tough and there will be plenty of failures along the way, but with each failure I will pick myself up as fast as possible and get right back on track. I’m setting 3 basic goals for the year:
-
Quit Smoking
- Give up Alcohol
- Lose 100 pounds
- Go back to carb cycling – I’ve had a lot of success with this eating style so I’m going back to it. I get carbs every day at breakfast and then it’s carb free the rest of the day for 2 days. Every third day I’ll have carbs and Sundays will be an unrestricted day. I’m targeting 1500-1800 calories each day, but I won’t be counting; I know what 1500-1800 calories per day looks like
- Target 1 gallon of water each day – I’ve had plenty of success with this, so no need to change that formula
- Walk, Walk, and Walk – I’m in my 40’s, I weigh almost 350 pounds, and my lifestyle is very sedentary. Right now my focus is on moving around as much as possible and walking whenever I get the chance. When I get a little more stamina I’ll move to cardio and strength training but right now walking is probably all I can handle
- Weigh-in once a week – If you’ve read my blog before you know I’m not a big fan of weighing in. However, as much as I don’t like pinning my goals to a number on a scale, I know that right now I’m not mentally strong enough to forgo this ritual; I need it to stay accountable. I’ll weigh-in and post my results on Saturdays
- Post a blog entry every day – I’ve never been much of a daily blogger, but I want to try this out because I think it will help me to establish a regular routine. They might not be long, but I want to post something each day to help me keep my commitment.
- Quit Smoking… Cold Turkey – Smoking is 90% mental and 10% physical. With the right mindset I can get through the first week and then it gets a whole lot easier. The challenge for me will come after the first few months when you start to let your guard down. If I slip up, I need to get right back up and remember my commitment to my health
- No more alcohol – Mrs. FogDog is with me on this so I have support
- Fail properly – It’s inevitable; If I go into this thinking there will not be hard times and that I won’t slip up once in a while then I fail before I even start. What’s important for me is to accept that I will have failures. When they happen I need to do the following:
- Acknowledge the failure
- Identify the cause
- Forgive myself
- Move on
- Take it day by day – I have my goals for the year, but this journey is a day-by-day battle. I’m not going to focus on the end result as much as I’m going to focus on what I need to do today. I focus on each day the results will come on their own. The final result can’t be known until the end of the year; no point in dwelling on it.
Sounds so simple right? Anyone who’s had any kind of success with improving their health knows that this will be anything but simple. It’s going to be one of the toughest years I’ve had to go through, but it beats the alternative of sitting around on December 31st thinking about how I wasted another year and how my health has deteriorated that much further. I’ve made a promise to myself that 2015 will be the year that I make my health a priority. It’s a promise that I intend to keep. I’m going to do a 180 in the next 360! Day #1 is tomorrow; wish me luck!
Sunday, August 24, 2014
My Weight Loss Plan
"A journey of 1000 miles begins with a single step" - Laozi
And so it begins…
I woke this morning with a smile on my face. It’s time! My transformation begins today; I got up this morning and jumped on the scale…
August 24, 2014 – 347.8 Pounds
So now that I’ve started I’m going to share my plan. It’s a work in progress since I just recently decided to accelerate my start date.
I recently read Chris Powell’s Book – Choose More Lose More. I’ve read a lot of books about weight loss; but not many have resonated with me as much as this one. I think what I liked about it was the majority of discussion was devoted toward the mental aspects of transformation. The rest of his book, including the plan really was a little vague and open to interpretation. Exactly what I need!
I’m going to give carb cycling a try. I’m committing to doing it for 3 months and then I will evaluate. I’m following Chris Powell’s “Turbo” plan for the first month an I’m also making some tweaks here and there to suit me and my style.
Some Key Points about My Plan
Eating
-
I will be eating 5 meals each day of roughly equal calorie count spaced out evenly
- I am targeting each meal to be about 300 calories on low carb days and 400 calories on high carb days
- Low carb days will be on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday
- High carb days will be on Wednesday, and Saturday
- Sunday is a free day to eat any way I choose
- Every 3 weeks I will spend the 4th week doing all high carb days
- I will try to drink a gallon of water every day
Exercising
-
I am committing 15 minutes each day to exercising and I will add 5 minutes each week until I get to 1 hour
- Exercise will consist of both cardio and strength training
- No matter how much I don't want to exercise, I will always complete at least 10 minutes each day
-
I will meditate 10 minutes each day in the morning
- Each morning I will remind myself that I can do this
- At the end of each day I will rate my performance (for the day only) and hold myself accountable
- I will continue to blog and seek support from my family and friends
- I will continue to make small promises to myself that support my new lifestyle; I will keep those promises
- I will limit my goals and limit how much I track progress and instead I will focus on taking it one day at a time
Now, I will set some goals and I will talk about tracking results and calorie counting in future blogs, but for now what more do I need? I’m motivated and I’ve made the commitment; I’ve taken my first step; I'll see you in a 1000 Miles!
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