I weighed in today and was down 5 more pounds this week for a total of 47. That’s a 10.6% loss of my total bodyweight and over 6 points off of my BMI. I have been at this 81 days, which means that I’ve lost an average of .58 pounds per day. I have 3 more pounds to lose to hit my target of 50 by April 1st and I’ve got 10 days to get there.
You all need to buy me presents when I hit the 50 pound mark. My parents are exempt because they’ve already bought me a gift. Everyone else, I’m expecting something nice. Cash would also be acceptable.
I’ve been terrible about updating my blog. Now that I have Facebook and Twitter, I find that there is a lot less drive to come on here and write new stuff. I am working on a post that is very important in regards to the future and God’s plans for it, I’m just not ready to publish it yet.
We’re still doing well in our weight loss. As of this past weekend, I’ve lost 42 pounds and Cassie has lost 27. I’m still hoping to hit 50 pounds by my birthday, but it’s now less than 2 weeks away and my weight loss has been slowing down the past couple of weeks. I’m still very happy with how things have gone and I’m still losing weight each week so I can’t complain. My workouts are getting more intense each week. I’m now walking a mile, riding the exercise bike three miles, and then swimming over half a mile at most of my workouts. We’re going to work towards running in the 5K the day of the Detroit marathon in October, and I will be running the whole way. I’m shooting for doing the whole 3.1 miles in 30 minutes, which would be a big deal for me. Thankfully it’s a long way away and I’ve got time to train.
I’m looking forward to April 1st at work because I’m going to be working for a new manager. I’m in a difficult spot in my job because I like what I’m doing in general, but there are certain things about my job that are very frustrating. A lot of the frustrations have to do with my manager and “team leader” who both leave a lot to be desired. I’m hoping that with some changes my job will not cause as many headaches as it has. I’m also still on the lookout for a management level position and I think one may be on the horizon that I would be perfect for.
Cassie may also have work related news in the future, but it’s far too early to mention it right now.
I’m looking forward to the Easter Sunday service at church. The creative arts team always does a fantastic job with the Easter presentation and I hope this year will be no different. And on the subject of creative arts at church, I’m becoming more involved with the Reality worship team and I’ve even been singing of late. I never realized how much I missed leading worship until I started playing again. Now I just need a decent guitar to play so I don’t have to keep borrowing other guys equipment. I have a beat up old Yamaha guitar that’s fine for playing at home and practicing, but it’s not a performance guitar. We don’t have the money to buy a new one either, so I guess I’m stuck borrowing for now. At least the guitars I’m borrowing are Taylors and they sound incredible.
I’m off to the gym. I’ve got another crazy workout to do.
I’m here with a somewhat significant update to our Biggest Loser family challenge that’s been going on for the past two months. Wednesday marked the 8 week point from when we started and I weighed in 36 pounds lighter than when I began. I am still somewhat ashamed to admit it, but I started out at 435 pounds. Wednesday marked the first time I weighed under 400 pounds since before Lily was born. It may seem like a sad thing that I was excited to see 399.0 on the scale, but I really was. So far I have lost 8.2% of my bodyweight. I am fitting into pants that are two sizes smaller than when I began and I am down one shirt size.
I can’t believe how bad my condition had to get before I took the initiative to do something about it, but I’m glad I didn’t wait until I had a heart attack or developed diabetes. Hopefully I can avoid so many of the problems associated with morbid obesity and live a long and healthy life from now on.
In April I will celebrate my 27th birthday and I’m hoping to have hit the 50 pound mark by then. I’ve been dropping about 5 pounds a week so I think this is very possible. I’m hoping by the time I turn 30 that I can hit my goal weight of 200 pounds.
Last night we headed out to a LOST party at James and Holly Brown’s house. It was a great time with our friends watching the season premiere of one of my favorite shows on a big screen. There were theories flying, LOST trivia, a German visitor, and there was food. Very tempting food.
I will not lie and say that I was good and ate salad when there were cookies and boneless buffalo wings, because I didn’t. I broke the diet for one night. I’m not bothered by it at all because we’ve been doing really good and you need to reward yourself every once in a while. I’m back on the wagon today and I’m still committed to doing this long term. Plus, I’m starting to see some results and that’s a good motivator in itself.
I’m currently wearing a pair of jeans that I was not able to wear a month ago. My clothes are starting to fit better, I have more energy, and I feel good all the time. I’ve been swimming a lot more and my endurance is getting a lot better. I’m able to swim longer and longer each time I go out. When I started, I could barely swim the length of the pool (25 yards) without needing to rest, but I’m swimming sets of 200 yards now before stopping for rest. I’m hoping to be able to swim 500 yard sets by the end of February.
I’m going to be watching the Super Bowl from home this year, so I won’t be tempted by a huge Super Bowl party spread. I’ll probably eat some 94% fat free popcorn and drink water, just what you dream of when you think of Super Bowl snack food.
I am officially a member of Forum Fitness in Westland, MI. It’s not a flashy place, I guess you could compare it to Average Joe’s Gym from the movie Dodgeball. It’s pretty basic with some free weights, a few treadmills and elliptical machines and a lap pool. I’m sticking to the pool for the time being, but I’ll be doing some more aerobic exercise in a couple of months. They also use this workout planning software called ActivTrax which can customize your workout to accomplish what you want with your workout. I haven’t used it yet, but I plan to.  They also have a masseuse on staff and you can get lower rates on massages as a member, which is a major bonus.
I’m feeling really good about the whole process. I can tell that eating better and exercising more is helping me keep my energy level up. I don’t even think about drinking pop anymore, and I’m not tempted to break my diet. It helps that I’m not starving myself. I’m still eating enough to keep myself full, but I’m eating more fruits and vegetables and cutting down my portions during meals. I’m trying to divide up my meals better so that I’m eating small meals throughout the day instead of three larger meals. When I’m at work, I’ll divide up my lunch so I have something to eat midway through the morning, at lunchtime, and then midway through the afternoon. It doesn’t always work, and there have been days when I’ve eaten my entire lunch at 10:30 in the morning. Overall though, I would call it a success so far.
Now that we’re nearly a month into it, it’s becoming our routine to eat healthy and stay active. Cassie and I are coordinating our schedules so we each have enough time to work out.  I am really trying to push myself when I’m working out. I spend most of my time working out alone, so I have to motivate myself to push beyond when I want to quit. Last night is a good example. I was swimming laps and I just hit the 1200 yard mark. I was shooting for 1500 yards, but part of my brain was content to stop at 12oo yards. It took me a minute to decide, but I ended up swimming the extra 300 yards. Tonight I’ll be back in the pool and I’ll be shooting for even more.