FatMan's Almost Daily Rant - Weigh In Results!!!

I missed posting yesterday, so I'm going to do an early one today. Just FYI, the scale gods were good to me yesterday. Even with the relaxed regime I did in the week leading up to the weigh in, I still came in with a 2 lb loss which I will take to the bank all day long. That puts me at 17.4 lbs down since my journey started a little over a month ago. I really feel that that 2 lbs was not earned but it happens. I was really expecting a gain. I guess I didn't fall too far out of wack with at least a loss. Like I said before, I really didn't fall back into the usual rut and kill soda and sweets. I did have some sweets but definitely no sodas. I don't want to get in the habit of doing that though because that is exactly how it has happened every other time. I do good up to about 10 or 15 lbs and then I slack off and add back that 10 or 15 plus another 10 or 15. I think I am better prepared now than back then though as I have others watching and keeping up with my progress.

Also just because I didn't post yesterday, it doesn't mean I didn't do the work. I put in my 30 minute walk again almost as soon as I got home and I also did a small 10 minute walk at work. The walk at work though was cut short because my back started up again and I didn't have my brace to help me. Also the shoes I wear to work are on their last leg and have absolutely no support left in them. I think I may start bringing my back brace and wearing my walking shoes to work everyday so I can get some time in. The only thing stopping me is the fact that my feet have a swelling problem at times and it makes the shoes a little uncomfortable after I have them on for a while. I don't want to get stuck having to be uncomfortable at work, but the benefits may outweigh the risks.

I'm also still plugging away dietarilly (is that even a word...lol). I eat my breakfast have a super light lunch and then a sensible dinner. I was trying to totally cut out carbs or reduce them to very low levels but it looks like it's not come to that yet. I plan to continue to eat like this until I plateau off in weight loss and then maybe strict down. Still no sodas and nothing from the snack machine at work.

The hardest thing I think I have to face right now is the getting up at 5 am. I REALLY want to walk early in the morning and then maybe a smaller walk at night and/or do some dumbbell workouts. Getting up that early though is like pulling teeth. I really need to get in the bed earlier but for some reason I just don't do it. The first few weeks on this new lifestyle, I was hitting the sack at 9:30 pm and I had no issue getting up at 5 am. Now I sometimes don't get into bed until 11 pm and if I have a lot on my mind, I wont drift off to sleep until 11:30 pm or even 12 am. Honestly, I know what it is but its hard to give it up. It's gaming showing it's ugly head again. I get on my game and it draws me in and that's it for the night. I have built out a schedule for myself and hopefully I can instate it starting tonight.

Today, with the weather as beautiful as it is, I think my concentration will be on yard work. I need to mow the grass and all that fun stuff so that will count as my walk today. With it being on the cool side, I don't mind mowing the grass so much but when it turns hot, I loathe it. Actually the only reason I don't mind it now is the fact that it gives me a good workout. I'm sure it still will in the summer, but with my allergy to humidity, it's a little harder. We'll see how things shake out. Who knows I may feel a little differently about mowing the grass once some of this weight is off.

Before I go, I have to get something off of my chest that REALLY irks me. My place of employment has a wellness plan that is technically optional. They say it is "optional" but if you don't do their screening and health assessment, your insurance rates go up a stupidly high amount. With that said, I have signed on and I'm doing my thing to get points for this wellness plan. I understand the need to reign in medical costs and I think the idea of a wellness plan is a general good idea. I don't like the fact that we are basically forced to do and "optional" plan, but so be it. If it gets me healthy then I'll jump through a few hoops. Thing is it seems my company is dead set against this. Every workplace promotion they set into place has something to do with food. They also are constantly bringing food trucks out front to sell some of the most unhealthiest foods known to man. The other day my company launched a big new product and how did they celebrate? They had a vendor bring in coffee and high end cinnamon muffins. Not only this but they put it right up front where you had to walk by them not only as soon as you walked in the door but also all through out the morning. Then after the vendors time was up, guess what they left? A HUGE tray of cinnamon muffins. It was everything I could do not to eat at least a dozen or so of those muffins. Then today I get to work and they come around passing out tickets. I inquire about what the ticket was for and they tell me they are bringing in and ice cream truck today and that ticket is for my free ice cream. I mean REALLY? You force us to jump through hoops to get healthy and then you offer us this free food that isn't even close to being compliant? Now they say it was free but somebody had to pay for each one of those tickets, muffins, burgers, dogs, or what ever the flavor of the weeks is. My thing is, if you were truly concerned about your employees weight, why not take all that money you spend on that crap and offer us a gym membership, or at least a discount at a fitness club. It makes me so sick to see this. Either they don't think, or they don't care, both of which really bites my butt. If I was smart about it I would have gone out there with my ticket and got the ice cream and threw it right in the trash. Thing is I don't think I have that much self control yet.

Anyways, I'll jump off my soap box. So far it's been a good day and I refuse to let this sour it. I am going no where near that truck and when I get home, I will mow the lawn and enjoy the night. I might even try to break out the dumbbells tonight and see if I can really tire myself out to fit my schedule.

Yall Be Great!

Night Before Weigh-In And All Is Quiet

Today I had a TON of school work to catch up on. I let myself slide a little on that too and that is a dangerous thing to let happen. The end of the semester is fast approaching and I am not looking forward to exam week. These classes have made me start to question my field of study choice so I think I'm going to take a day off in the near future and go in to get counselling. It's funny because the class that I thought I would be having issues in ends up being the one I'm acing and the one that I thought I would ace ends up being the problem class. Ah well, all I can do is hunker down and get ready for it the best I can.

One thing that shocked me into action today is one of my friends at work who is younger than me was out of work all last week. With me being gone Thursday and Friday last week, I thought nothing of it. Well, when I came in today, he told me he was in the hospital having 2 stints put in his heart. I thought he was joking at first and kind of laughed but then I realized he wasn't laughing. This dude is about the closest to my situation as you can get. He has been over weight all of his life and went on a fad diet and lost a ton of weight only to see it jump back on him. It's the same guy I was commenting on walking with to the store the other day and him about wearing me out. I couldn't believe it. Here's this dude struggling with weight just like me and just out of the blue he gets admitted and stints put in. I don't know what to say but I got to get moving! Scary thing is that some of the symptoms that he was describing that drove him to go to the doctor, I have felt in the very near past. It's shocking to see someone so young going through something like that. If you would of lined up 100 people and told me to pick out the one with heart problems, he would have been the last one I chose. I'm beginning to think someone is trying to tell me something.

Anyway, I heard today that nothing drives people to church like the devil nipping at their heals and I think I can relate that to my weight loss journey because that's all it took for me. I did a walk at work and came home and headed straight out and walked the green way with the Ms. I could really tell the difference those 2 weeks set me back. My back wasn't the issue this time thanks to the "Amazing Brace", how sweet the sound =P. This time its my legs and knees. I powered on through it and got my 30 minutes in but it was not as easy as it was 2 weeks ago.

So tomorrow is the big Weigh In day and I get to see what damage was done on my 2 week absence. I don't really think it will be too bad, but you never know. If the scale gods are bad to me tomorrow, I know what I did wrong and I have already taken steps to correct it. If they are good to me tomorrow, well it will motivate me even more to get my big butt out there and move.

Also I missed my morning walk that I was supposed to do at 5 am this morning. I am not a morning person and not getting to bed at a decent time costs me sleep and that is a recipe for disaster for me. I say that and l;looking at the clock it's already 11:05 pm. WOW... I better be signing off.

Stats for today:  9584 steps, 4.52 miles, and 7 flights of stairs.

And as I leave yall with that, again I want to thank yall for yall's support and keeping me on my toes. It really means the world to me.

Yall Be Great!

What Happened To Fatman?

So it's been a while since I posted an entry here. I'm truly sorry about that. I want to say though that it humbles me the amount of people that sent me messages asking where I was. You guys are great! I can't say I was totally 100% in compliance during my absence but it's no where near as bad as it could have been. During this time I found out I have people watching me and I can thank you all for getting me back on track. One good thing I can take from this time away is that I STILL have not had a soda. Not a sip! My downfall though was bread. I did have my fair share of the white devil but I see what it does to me know and it ends tonight.

Also during this time off, I fell back into my rut with gaming. I can see what a damaging effect it has had on my life in the past 12 days. I honestly consider myself a gaming addict. I have to find a way to pull myself off of this computer and get things done. I will be working on this in the coming days. The only way I think I can do this is to put myself on a strict schedule and stick to it. There is so much other stuff that I need and want to do but I have no time for because of my addiction. If I schedule in my time and stick to it, hopefully that will limit these disappearances. I am hoping to start with a walk at 5 am in the morning and possibly add in dumbbell training in the evening after work.

I also fell off on my walking during my absence. Funny thing is I got the back brace to help me and that's when I pretty much threw in the towel. That back brace, by the way, is EXACTLY what I needed. When I did walk with it, my back did not kick in until I was almost finished with 30 minutes of walking. It is amazing! Now I cant wait to start back up and get this done so I don't have to wear it to walk.

I haven't weighed myself since last Tuesday but as of Tuesday I was down another 2 lbs. I'm sure that will go up on the next weigh in this Tuesday, but like I said, I know what I need to do and I plan on doing it!

I'll keep it short tonight, but just know I'm back and will be trolling Yall's posts again real soon. Thank you again for calling me out FogDog, Scott and Mrs. FatMan. I don't know what I would do without you! You guys ROCK!

Now enough of this chatter and let's get this done! Yall be GREAT!!

Day #16: And It's Weigh In Part Deux!!

WOW! That's all I can say. My wife and I decided to take the kids along with the dog to the trail we walked yesterday. I'm going to have to think about what I was thinking because I hit that trail like it was a free buffet! I was zoned and before I even realized it, I was at our stopping point. There's a nice bench there where I take a quick rest before starting back. Once again the back raised its ugly head and let me know, almost exactly 10 minutes into the walk like clock work, how much I can't wait for this back brace. I pushed on through though. We ended up walking for 20 minutes there and 20 minutes back. My wife took the spazoid dog on the way in so I could concentrate on nothing but keeping pace. I took him on the way back to give her a rest from his darting all over at every squirrel. I really didn't start giving out until the last 1/4. I couldn't talk a complete sentence and sweat was pouring off me like no tomorrow. It felt AMAZING! One day I'm going to run that dang trail, mark my words!

Me Hittin It And Spazoid Kash

Along the trail there is signs for an upcoming 5k walk/run. I am seriously considering signing up. The The walk I did today was a hair shy of 2 miles, 0.94 miles each way. The 5k isnt until May 9th and I would think that if I continue to walk every day I should be able to add another mile to my distance by then. Heck with it, I'm going to do it. I'm going to get the website tomorrow when we walk and I'm signing up. I've always wanted to do a 5k and this is the perfect opportunity.

Anyway I found a new motivation today. It comes in the form of an app. The app is called Visualize You. Now what this app does is it takes your picture and morphs it into what you will look like at your goal weight. So I was playing with it and just fair warning these pictures can be used to scare of wild animals in emergency situations but also might crack your screen from ugliness, but I have no fear anymore! Take a look at these:

The one on the left is me at 364 lbs and the one on the right is me at 225 lbs. Loose the shaggy bum beard and I like the right SO much better. Its a small bit of motivation but its definitely something to work for. Y'all try it out. It's free and for Apple or Android.

Anyways, official weigh in day! I got on the scale this morning to a number of 364.2 lbs. I actually took an increase of 0.2 lbs for my time away from walking but I'll take it because for the week I was still down 3.4 lbs! I think I'm losing my weight in my trunk though because my pants are feeling baggy but the waist isnt budging much, just a bit. It's ok I know it will come. It's got to. I refuse to let it stay on me. I have a long way to go to make Mr. Right up there but one day, that will be me!

Stats for today 7,649 steps 5 floors, 3.61 miles and 60oz of water so far.

Thanks for reading and if you can't be good, Y'all be great!

Day #15: Holy Pitfalls FatMan!

So I haven't been blogging in a few days. I am happy to report that I haven't deviated too much from the path in these few days. I am slammed with school and work and I also jumped back into a game that hooked me for 2 years of my life. I have also developed a back issue that shows itself everyday I walk around 10 minutes in. If you didn't know, I had a pretty serious accident about 14 years ago and now am the proud owner of 6 inches of high grade titanium lining a portion of my spine. No excuses though. That's the focus of today. So I have ordered myself a back brace and I am excited at the possibilities of having a walk without back pain.

I'm going to make this short tonight as I just finished a pretty intensive test and assignment for school and I'm getting ready to chill. I will write more tomorrow because it's weigh in day...YAY! Just know that while I didn't hit the trail like I should have, I was still doing stuff in the yard and such cause its that time of year...DOUBLE YAY!! At the last weigh in on Saturday, I came in at 364 is a little over 15 lbs. Then Easter happened and yeah..we'll see. I didn't over do it and I STILL have not had a soda so we shall see what the weight gods have in store tomorrow =).

Today, I hit the wife on a new trail and did pretty well. I kept up almost there and back but gave out the second half. One of these days, I'm gonna race by her, so watch your back Ang! I saw person after person walk around me and speed off and I got to thinking, they must think I'm stupid being out here huffin and heavin but you know what, that walk was probably 300 tines the distance I used to walk not even a month ago so they can watch their backs too, cause I'm comin!

Stats for today, 8409 steps, 3.97 miles, 8 floors and I'm just finishing up my 80th oz of water. Not a bad day to kick it back off. We'll see what tomorrow brings! BRING IT!

Motivation for today is like I said, no excuses. So I found a perfect example of this. His name is Bob Wieland.

This dude right here...WOW! Mr Wieland was a Vietnam soldier that got both of his legs blown off from a mortar mine. That didn't stop this dude. His list of accomplishments are mind numbing. This dude finished the  1986 NY Marathon, not in a wheel chair, this dude walked the whole thing on his hands! He has since gone on to compete and finish many marathons all on his hands. He also walked across the US on his hands to raise awareness for Vietnam Vets. Probably the most incredible feat though, he is the only double amputee to finish the Kona, Hawaii Iron Man race without a wheelchair.

Now if this dude can do it, who am I to stand here and say I can't? Hats off to you Mr. Weiland. Read more about him here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bob_Wieland

http://www.bobwieland.com/

And hats off to yall for reading. I'm still going and just wont quit! Yall be Great!

Day # 10: Not Only Hanging On but Moving UP!

Today was the 10th day since I have had anything but compliant food and drink. 10 days! Funny thing is I can count my cravings on one hand. 11 days ago, I couldn't tell you how many calories I ate in a day but I'm sure it was enormous. I haven't even so much as walked by the snack machine at work. Don't get me wrong, there are still things I need to cut out of my diet and lifestyle but I will work on them slowly. I think I have made a huge step in the right. I kind of feel bad for the vending machine business that stocks our machines at work because I'm sure they have noticed a substantial drop in sales. 10 days though...wow! I still remember the last naughty thing I had, it was a plate of nachos at the local auction barn and a Super Big Gulp soda from the local gas station. I don't miss it in the least. The food I'm eating now is far and beyond more healthy for me and it is paying dividends hand over fist. NEVER AGAIN!

So I went out on my walk today and decided to walk with my wife and my spazoid canine life mate Kash. Not only did we walk further than my normal walk but I kept up with her for half the way, 3/4 of a mile I'd say. After we reached the train tracks, it felt like someone was stabbing me in the back and I was huffing and puffing but I stayed right there with her. No way on that first week would I have been able to go that far much less keep up with Speedy Gonzales. I have to say though that I am so proud of her. She gets out there everyday and humps it for at least 30 minutes, usually more. That is far and away a huge leap from both of our sedentary lives we led just 2 weeks ago. I think though that I could probably have kept up with her a little farther if my back didn't start up. I am considering finding me a back brace but I know that's going to be a challenge not only financially but also finding one that will fit around me. I guess you don't know until you look so that's what I'll be doing here shortly. Back to the walk though, I got all the way back in my neighborhood and I had thoughts of turning and heading straight to the house. Right as I came up to my turn, the little voice in my head said "Go until your finished, not until your tired." So I turned left instead of right and walked all the way around my block to get back home. It's very interesting to watch my body change and my endurance grow. It excites me to imagine the possibilities of things that I could do in the near future. As you know, I signed up for the Autism walk but that isn't until October. I'm thinking of finding me a closer 5K and going for it. Nothing would top off a week like finishing a 5K. I can imagine myself crossing the finish line already! I'll keep you posted on that.

I bumped my step goal up for this week to 6000 steps and I reached it with no problem today. Stats for the day are: 7125 steps, 3.36 miles, 3 floors and 80 oz of water. I can really see how water is helping me to not only loose this weight but also is keeping my skin from being dry. I had a 4 day weekend this past weekend and didn't really drink the water I should have and it showed on the scale with a plateau and my knuckles on my hand were like deserts again. That proves it to me that I need at least 64 oz and the more the better.

Anyways, it's about that time so I'll leave you with my motivations for today. Thank Y'all for reading and Y'all Be Great!

Two For Tuesday!! Official Weigh In!!

Something is different. I can't put my finger on it but something is definitely different. First off, my wife and I decided today would be a good day to get a little yard work done. I hate yard work. I loathe it. If I could get away with it I would pave my front and back yard over and paint it green.

I took a little walk at work today with one of the guys from work and Holy Crikey that dude walks fast! We made it to the natural food market and back in 8 minutes flat. It usually takes me at least 15 minutes. This dude is almost the size of me and he almost had me jogging. I kept up though. I don't know if he slowed down or if he was showing off but I think I have my new target for walking. Anyways, I got back and lo and behold they were passing out hot dogs. I cannot resist free food so I jumped right in line. They looked at me like I was crazy when I told them no bun and no chips and walked away with nothing but 2 dogs on a plate. That's cool though, I usually don't eat lunch so it was a nice surprise from the norm of a tablespoon of peanut butter.

I got home and my wife was already out with the dog. She came in not far behind me so I waited about 30 minutes and asked her if we were going to do the yard today. She said she was tired from her walk, so I said what the hay, I'll give it a go myself. So I pull out the mower and was shocked when it started after pulling the chain about 20 times. So I started mowing, and I mowed and I mowed and I mowed. Usually I have to take a break half way through the back yard and after the front yard and before weed eating. Not today! I got the back yard, front yard and the weed eating done all in one go. Normally, I would be done for the day after that. I wasn't. I came in, ate my supper and did the dishes all in another go. Guess that's more than two for Tuesday but hey, it rhymes...lol! I checked my stats and right now I am sitting at 10,300 steps, 4.86 miles walked, 9 flights of stairs, and 84 oz of water and it's only 7 PM. I am seriously considering going out for my walk also just to hit that 5 mile mark. I'll probably pass though as I don't want to tempt fate and wake up and not be able to get out of bed in the morning,

So today was the official weigh in day. I have to say the amount of weight I have lost is far beyond what I thought I was going to be able to do in this first week, even with it only being water. I do think though that I am going to try another scale because it still bothers me that my scale at home is showing 10 lbs less than the doctors scale. I may start doing my weigh ins at Harris Teeter as they have a scale there. But, for the first week, I came in with a total weight loss of 11.6 lbs. I actually recorded a 1 lb gain from Monday to Tuesday but hey that's ok with me. 11.6 lbs is nothing to scoff at. And with all the exercise I'm getting over riding the couch like usual, I should continue to see weight loss for a while. If not, I'm still not stopping. I'm feeling way too good to stop now.

And here is the motivation for today. Y'all be great!