30Ibs and Counting

Hi Everyone -

I'm sorry it's taken me so long to write. I've been completely absorbed with work and life. I'm now down about 30Ibs. I've been suffering from a cold/viral thing so I haven't been going to the gym as much. I'm planning to get back into the swing of things tomorrow! I'm still quite a ways from my goal, but we're moving in the right direction.

I'm still struggling with temptations potato chips, M&Ms. I was in a meeting yesterday with a vendor and he was eating M&Ms. I wanted to snatch the bag out of his hands and gobble it down, but I didn't. That's a start!

Good night.

Weight Loss & The Family Visit

It's difficult to maintain any sensible eating program from the time the phone rings and you hear family is coming, until a week after they've left. I've been to University, travelled throughout the world, read numerous nutrition books but when your mother comes - all that knowledge goes out the window and your 6 years old again and being told to finish your plate. What I'm learning from this visit is that unhealthy eating habits are as shared as the DNA you have in your body. We learn how to manage food from our families. We imitate our parents because we love them.

I understand the pattern. I get the fact that what I learned growing up around food is ALL WRONG!

• Every meal does not have to be a culinary delight
• You should not eat until you are overstuffed and full
• Eating foods in their natural state is important
• You will not outgrow being overweight (keep in mind I'm 41)

Even with all this knowledge, I am still struggling with the patterns that I learned as a child. The good news is the visit is 1/2 over and I have not succumbed to temptation - but it's 10x harder.

By the way, I'm down 15 Ibs. today!

YEAH!!!!

1 Day At A Time

This morning I started my day with 50 minutes of cardio.  I didn't go as hard as I did over the weekend.  I think I'll take tomorrow off.  I seem to run into limitations when I try to work out 4-5 days in a row.

My breakfast was:

 Home made granola (very small amount of honey and no sugar)

 1/2 cup of milk

 1 cup of fresh berries

Lunch was:

 1 Chicken breast (baked)

 1 cup steamed broccoli

Dinner

1 Chicken leg

1 Steamed Veggies

I'm feeling pretty good.  I think I'm buoyed by the fact that I lost another 1.5Ibs this morning which takes me to a grand total of 11Ibs in just over a week.  Not a bad start!

Thin or Happy? You can't have both.

So which is it?  Are you going to choose to be thin or to be happy?  Happy people ate something today and didn't spend 3 hours in the torture chamber a.k.a the GYM!  

Think about it.

Have you ever been around dieting people?  We're cranky, our stomachs rumble at inappropriate times.  Our clothes don't fit right anymore - either we're holding onto our clothes for dear life because they are 3/4 of a size too big or we're squeezing into a pair of pants that we don't quite fit into yet.  Either way it comes off as a circus side act.

I think for now I've chosen to be thin.  I have memories of being happy.  That'll do for now.

Thanks for reading.

Christopher 

Monday Morning!

Hi Everyone -

It's Monday morning and I'm off to work out.  Today, I'm doing kick boxing and then some cardio on the elliptical.  I packed my lunch (baked chicken and steamed broccoli) to keep me from being tempted by something inappropriate.

My motivation is very high today.  I'm down another 1 Ibs.  I think the water weight loss is over and we're now into the real deal....

Thanks for reading.

Christopher

Weight Management & Celiac Disease

Celiac disease is this gluten allergy that you're hearing so much about today.  Celiac disease can cause weight gain and weight loss depending on a number of factors.  There's a myth in the Celiac community that if you stop eating wheat, barley, rye and their by-products - you will lose weight.  One book I recently read had a section titled 'gluten free and thin as can be'.  Total bulls*it!  This may be true for others but not for me.  The only thing that has worked for me is LOTS of exercise, counting calories/portion control.

The one thing that celiac disease HAS done for me is reduced the temptation.  I am no longer tempted by cakes, pies and the like.  The gluten free equivalents don't taste nearly as tempting as the real deal.  For this, I am grateful. There isn't a cookie made that is worth three days of sheer agony of my body trying to digest it.

The Beginning

Hi Everyone -

I'm a 41 year old male that lives in California.  I've struggled with weight ALL my life.  I've made the decision not to struggle anymore but to win this battle.  For those who are interested in this journey, I will chronicle my ups, downs and experiences over the next year.

My goal is to lose 80 Ibs.  We'll see what I look like when I reach that goal.  I started my program a week ago and am down 8Ibs.  I think the rapid weight loss is really more water than anything else....now it's time for the hard part!   I've tried the Atkins diet, weight watchers, Somersizing, etc., etc.  They all work to some degree, but my approach now is simply cut calories, exercise and deal with the emotional stuff that got me in this predicament....

As a reader, you should know that I recently separated from the love of my life.  I'm pretty sure the weight was a factor.  One of many factors.  

Thanks for taking the journey with me!  

P.S.  Tonight I'm having roasted chicken breasts with steamed broccoli (delicious).