What This Blog Is All About

I need to be healthier. Badly. Individual efforts have not sufficed, so I'm hoping the support of friends, family, and anyone who happens along this blog can help me along.


For a fuller description of what I'm doing and how people can help, click here to read my first post.

Monday, September 7, 2009

Where do I go from here?

3 months down. 26.5 pounds down, which is no small feat. But I'm stuck. I first passed this weight on July 12, so I've been kinda treading water for almost 2 months. Here's where I am:
  • I am having trouble keeping myself from eating the food in front of me.
  • I am having increasing trouble keeping myself from going to get worse food from drive thrus.
  • My legs are starting to hurt around the knees and elsewhere. That could certainly be related to yoga stretching unfamiliar things and slowing down my aerobic work.
  • My exercise and motivation to do so are slipping severely.
  • I'm tired of blogging.
  • I've stopped checking blood sugar regularly although it's still light years better than May.

On the other hand:
  • I am wearing 3X clothes that haven't fit me in a few years (ie, seem to be down from 4X).
  • The belt I bought in June is hovering between the 5th and 6th notch - it was at the 3rd when I bought it so almost ready for the next belt.
  • I've ridden, walked, and played more than I thought I could, and never would have expected to make it through 8 yoga classes.
  • I've been outdoors more this summer than I have been since college.
  • I make a mean scrambled egg.
  • I've raised over $650 for the Buffaloe Scholarship.

So what now? Much like Dexter, I feel a need to change up the code, to keep myself motivated and moving forward. All time scales beyond TODAY just seem counter-productive, so I'll try the following:
  1. Eat 5 servings of fruits/veggies.
  2. Eat no more than 1 chocolate-inclusive snack.
  3. Look for protein and fiber at each meal.
  4. Drink only water.
  5. Exercise at least 10 minutes on the jump rope or 2 miles walked or 4 miles biked (ideally more).
  6. Write up the posts each day. Weekends will be exercise-only.

Will it work? I don't know. I like the progress I have made, but can't help doubting what I'll do now. I'll keep the site updated.
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  1. JenSeptember 7, 2009 at 4:10 PM

    Hey Charles! It sounds like you're having a rut, but I like the changes you're talking about making!

    One thing I will say, and you ignore me as much as you want to, but I have always had a really hard time with limiting myself to "x" diets. It doesn't stop the cravings, and I conveniently forget what I have and haven't consumed on a regular basis. The most successful diet changes I've ever made come from "temporary" cut out diets of significant length. Lent without soda, and I no longer want soda. 30 days of Paleo, and I don't understand why people need pasta. The idea in my mind that something is "temporary" makes the change acceptable to my head - I can not eat sugar for 30 days, though the thought of not eating sugar for the rest of my life was at one time cringe-worthy. I have been off Paleo for 10 days, had sugar one time, and it was a so-so experience that I feel no need to repeat again any time soon. The idea of natural sugars only just isn't bad anymore. I mean, I'm sure I'll eat birthday cake on somebody's birthday to be convivial, and once in a blue moon may eat a pastry because I love baking as an art form, but the daily cookie? I don't have any desire for that.

    So, I honestly and with all my heart recommend taking something - like sugar or pick your whatever - completely and utterly gone for a Lent-length period of time. Week 2 will be a horrible craving festival, but you will make it through because "it's only xx days, and I am a stubborn expletive that can make it xx days". Then come like week 4, you'll come to realize that these things are just not important anymore, and it's because you COMPLETELY got them out of your system. Food works like drugs, man! You can't quit cocaine by cutting back to once a week!

    Two other things.
    1. Don't forget that fiber comes from fruits and vegetables! You don't need an apple and a slice of toast!
    2. Fish oil! Have you been sung the virtues of fish oil yet? Go to Costco (or we'll go for you if you're not a member), pick up a big jar, and take 3-5 a day (I take 3, but I'm smaller, so...) Studies have shown them helping with heart disease, cholesterol, joint pain, and all kinds of stuff. It's all about the Omega3 vs omega6 fatty acid imbalance. If you want a miracle pill, this is the closest thing reality might have to it. http://circ.ahajournals.org/cgi/content/full/106/21/2747
    http://www.reuters.com/article/healthNews/idUSCOL34872120070523

    Anywho, don't give up, my friend. There are rough roads on any journey worth taking. The quality of our character is shown in whether we keep going through the bleak terrain to find the better, or whether we give up at the signs of adversity. Do not give up. You owe it to yourself and your health. You will be so proud in the long run.

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