Weigh in Wednesday – Week 3

After stepping on the scale, once again I was surprised. I weighed in at a grand total of 290 lbs. That is 6 pounds less than last week at 296, and 11 pounds since I started seriously counting calories and blogging! And back in July, I weighed 330 so this brings me to a total of exactly 40 pounds! Too bad I hadn’t started this blog or counting calories until a few weeks ago, I think my progress would be even better!

Want to know what is even more amazing though? Not once did I deny myself the food I wanted. Here are some foods that some nutritionists would scoff at:

• Friday night, I had sushi. For the most part this was healthy, minus the cream cheese filled rolls I devoured!
• Saturday afternoon I went and had chicken fajitas from my favorite Mexican restaurant in Knoxville, El Charro’s.
• Monday night, I had chicken strips, pulled pork, slaw, fries, and wings. Smaller portions, but still not “the best”. And I took the ribs in for lunch the next day!

So for those 3 meals, I deviated from my home cooked healthy food and ate the bad food I wanted. I simply ate smaller portions and didn’t just say “oh well, I ate bad this meal… maybe tomorrow!”. Or if I knew I was going to eat a not so good dinner, ie Monday night… I simply adjusted my lunch to include less calories than I wanted. Calories are key to losing weight. There is no quick fix, no miracle “lose weight now” gimmick. I didn’t balloon up over night and I certainly won’t lose it over night. 5 or 6 pounds here or there may not seem significant in relation to my total weight… but 5 or 6 pounds here or there adds up fast!

So, hopefully today will be Goodbye to the 290’s forever. And next week, we can say hello to the 280’s for a couple weeks!

Weigh in Wednesday – Week 2

Success! Total weight this morning? 296 lbs. That is 5 lbs lost in a week!

(I apologize for the bad pictures. I left my phone, i.e camera, at work last night. I could only take them in the mens room here at the office! Will try to replace!)

It has been a couple years since I have been down in the Two hundreds. I know I have a lot to go, but it is still progress!

Counting calories and exercising regularly has done wonders. I have been a Nutritional Label freak this past week, and it has paid off. But the most eye opening thing was the total calories I would consume without even thinking about it! Snacking here, bad meal there, bad meal here. It is truly amazing I am still alive just by looking at the junk I have been putting into my body. Here are some common foods consumed with a surprisingly high caloric value:

• 2 Table Spoons of Peanut Butter – 200 Calories
• 1 Large Bagel (123g) – 354 Calories
• 1 Mini Bag Nacho Cheese Doritos (49.6) – 250 Calories
• 8 0z Mountain Dew – 110 Calories (imagine how many calories are in a 20oz bottle)

Now this doesn’t mean swear off these foods! Well, the Mountain Dew can go. I would rather eat my calories than drink them. But the thing is, this past weekend.. Pizza. Yep, I ate pizza. But I had the nutritional information from the restaurant (Jet’s Pizza … a very awesome pizza place if you are in the Knoxville area) and one square of deep dish pepperoni pizza was 300 calories. Is that high? Yes. But moderation is key! I took ownership of that, and had 2 pieces on Sat and 2 pieces on Sunday. I built that into my daily caloric limit. My point is, I am not on a diet. I am simply changing the way I eat. I still eat what I want to eat, when I want to eat it. I simply choose healthier options and if I do eat unhealthy foods, I account for it in my diet and enjoy it in moderation!

The point is, you need to be AWARE of what you eat and account for it. Make a conscience decision about the things you put into your body. At the end of the day, you are ultimately responsible for you. No one made you eat that entire bag of chocolate sweet sixteen donuts (which btw, is a whopping total of 1226 calories at 230 calories per 3 donuts). Which yes, I have sadly done before. Sadly.