Contract, Week 2

Week two of my contract for weight-loss has come and gone. Weigh-in was tonight at my local Weight Watchers center. But before I get to the weigh-in results, let me describe the progress made.

Eating was spot-on. Made good choices, didn't feel deprived due to some small, judicious treats. Stayed within my points and avoided late-night eating altogether. Also avoided at-work eating except for what I brought each day.

The weigh-in results? 2.2 lb loss. I am yet again nearing ONE-derland (for those not in the know, that would mean that my weight begins with a ONE). I am currently at 203.8. 199.8 is within reach, though a stretch, for this week, but certainly the following week, assuming I remain consistent.

Frank Tibolt is credited with saying,

"We should be taught not to wait for inspiration to start a thing. Action always generates inspiration. Inspiration seldom generates action."

To me, these are very true words. I cannot say that I was "inspired" to lose weight a few weeks ago. My actions at the time (inactivity, over-eating) proved that. But still, I had to make a choice. I took a bold step. That step that I took has resulted in an amazing level of inspiration and motivation in me and it has begun to snowball. I am as gung-ho right now as I was week 3 of my original weight-watchers start. Each day I view as another opportunity to make healthy choices, live right and drop some additional weight!

Here we go...WEEK 3! Let's ROCK IT!

NSV

For those "not-in-the-know" and NSV is, in weight-loss terms, a Non-Scale Victory. I had one this morning. My belt is one belt-hole in further than it has been in recent weeks. I am finally moving in the right direction!

Weigh-in tomorrow - hoping for another good result.

Change has come

So, we have a new President today. The first-ever african-american President. That's obviously not news to anyone in this country.

I did not vote for Barack Obama to be President. There are many reasons for this, not the least of which are the views he has with respect to the moral issues facing our nation such as abortion and marriage rights. I firmly believe that the direction that a nation takes morally will predict the direction that a nation will eventually take in every other aspect. As we emerge from under the covering of God's grace by walking away from the moral center of God's will, we endanger ourselves more and more. But that's not what this blog entry is about.

Barack Obama is my President. He is the leader of my country and as such, I am ready to get behind him and support him. I will support him in prayer, praying that God will lead and guide his every step. Praying that God will bring him wise counsel and strong courage to do what is right for this nation. Praying that he will bend his own knee in prayer as well, knowing the task that is set in front of him is far too large for the shoulders of one man.

I will support him by giving him a chance to enact the change he speaks of and giving that change a chance to work (although I cannot and will not support some of the moral aspects of his platform).

Yes, as Barack said, "Change has come." Let's hope that it is indeed a change in the right direction.

Contract - Week 1

So, 1 week ago, I signed a contract to get back on track with my weight-loss efforts. Here are the results:

I kept to the contract ENTIRELY, holding to all of the aspects of it. I stayed within my points. I wrote down everything I ate. I exercised (6) days for a minimum of 30 minutes (mostly walking). I ate nothing that I did not bring with me to work, which included saying no to several offered bagels and a YUMMY-looking office birthday cake. I ate nothing after 8:30.

The results? I feel MUCH better. I feel like I'm in control of myself. I have more energy. And I lost 5 lbs!

So, today begins week #2. I'm hoping that at the end of these 4 weeks, I will have built enough new habits to avoid the need for further contracts, but if necessary, I will certainly renew that contract when it expires.

Looking forward to further results in the near future. I can do this!

Very loose change

Do you ever get out of your car at the grocery store and see a penny or two on the ground? Have you ever seen a nickle next to the gas pump? Or a dime in the street? Well, we do; in spades!

A few years ago, my family decided that, for a full year, we would collect all of the coins/cash (yes, CASH, too!) that we find all over the place, just to see how much it would add up to. We figured perhaps $20. We were right, in 2006, having found $21. But, as it turns out, we were just amateurs at that time. 2007 brought $141! A few larger bills added to that total, but the vast majority was still quarters here, pennies there.

2008 was fun, since we had a "winner-takes-all" contest, keeping each person's money separate. I was in last place with $24. My daughter in second with $26. My wife won the pot with a whopping $48. Total was $98, down a bit from the prior year, but still not too shabby.

This year, we are still separate, but it's keep-your-own. Believe it or not, we have already found about $6 this year, and it's only 11 days old!

So, where do we find this money? All over the place, really, but a few places are typically more "fruitful" than others. Gas station vacuum machine areas are usually quite rich in pennies and such. Shopping store "coinstar" machines usually yield some "reject-pile" goodies, including a lot of foreign coins (not that we count them). Ride parks, especially WATER parks, are amazingly good for finding all kinds of change.

I'm CERTAIN that we get laughed at for caring to bend down for pennies and such on the ground, but if those people saw the amounts of money this adds up to, they'd be bending down to get them, too!

Hi. My name is...

Hi. My name is Jim and I am addicted to food. There, I said it. Yes, I was able to lose 115 lbs 2 years ago and keep it off for about 1 year. But in the 17 months since then, I have now officially added 31 lbs back on. At that pace, it would not take all that long to add the other 85 and then some more, so at this point, I need to make a life-or-death decision. At least, that's the way that I see it.

So, how did I put on 31 lbs in 17 months? Well, it's somewhat the same answer I used to give when people asked how did I lose 115 lbs. It's all about controlling what I put IN to my body. Sure, exercise is important, but I've proven that I can out-eat just about any workout I can dream up. I even gained 2 lbs the week after running a 1/2 marathon! I've always attributed the vast majority of my weight-loss to controlling intake, with a minimal contribution from my exercise.

For that reason, I cannot allow the several injuries I have suffered in the past year, limiting my exercise for long stretches of time, to be the excuse I use for my gain. It's ALL about how much I put in.

One of the things that I have noticed about myself is that, unlike MANY who go on Weight Watchers, my stomach, or more appropriately, my capacity to eat volumes of food, as in no way shrunk. Not even a little bit. Unfortunately, I can still pack away vast quantities of food, as I have proved all-too-often. What can I do about this? Well, I have to be FAR MORE DILIGENT with respect to both portion-control as well as recognizing my satisfaction levels.

Eating at night, after the family has gone to sleep, has been probably the single greatest contributor to my weight gain. Somehow I have gotten into the habit of what I call "grazing" through the kitchen. I go through the snack drawers and take one of these, one of those, a small handful of these and a bunch of those. All so that, individually, noone would notice anything "missing." But totaled up, as I have done in the aftermath of several grazing sessions, it can add up to over 40 points quite easily. OBVIOUSLY, this is not very conducive to losing or even maintaining a healthy weight.

So, what am I going to do about this life-or-death decision? I have committed to a 28-day contract. I even put it in writing and signed it, giving it to my wife. I agreed to the following:

• Stay within points (Daily, Weekly, Activity included).
• Journal EVERYTHING I eat.
• Exercise (5) days per week, 30-minutes or more.
• I will eat ONLY what I bring to work each day.
• I will eat NOTHING after 8:30 PM.

That is my commitment. I firmly believe that if I stick to the above agreement, I will significantly decrease my current 211 lb body at the end of the 4 weeks and I will reinvigorate my commitment to the Weight Watchers program.

I can do this. I WILL do this.

2009 - I love new beginnings

Because of the LORD's great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. [Lamentations 3:22-23]

This quote from the Bible is very often quoted around this time of year. God is a God of the second chance. Some may even say that He's a God of the third and fourth and fifth chances, too. And so on. And they might be right, in a sense. But equally, they would be wrong in a very important sense, too.

You see, when we fail, God picks us up, dusts us off and sets us back on His path. When He does this, we get a second chance, right? But it is so much more than that. Scripture tells us that he removes our sin from us as far as the east is from the west [Psalm 103:12]. It also tells us that He choses not to remember them any longer. [Isaiah 43:25]. That means that if we fall again, God picks us up, dusts us off and sets us back on His path, giving us a second chance. You see, calling this a third or fourth chance diminishes what God is doing for us. When He gives us a second chance, it really is a fresh start.

His mercies are new every morning. Each new day, and even moreso, each new year, is an opportunity to come before God and make a fresh start. No matter what you went to bed with last night, the mercy and love of God is there in the morning to pick you up, dust you off and give you a fresh start.

Happy New Year!