A Challenge, No, Two Challenges

Wow, did September move fast or what? It sure did in my eyes. A down right blurry flash of light is what I saw most September days.

Being blurry & busy is great, I prefer busy to not-busy. Actually, a quick sidebar; I am not looking forward to those retirement years because I just cannot wrap my head around being not busy. Oh I am sure when those years arrive, I'll adjust and find things to busy myself with. But for now, retirement is just not something I long for.

Back from the future to what is at hand now. October is now. I am now, you are now; our lives & livelihoods are now. The greatest hurdle to my livelihood continues to be my weight because I've allowed it to be. If you could see me typing right now, you'd see me shaking my head east-west in my own direction.

Enter October, enter opportunity to right that which I find wrong within. To make this right I need tools, many tools. Accountability is one tool which I need to leverage with greater consistency. Accountability will come from many avenues. From family, myself, bloggers, myself, our cats... well maybe not the cats.

To foster Accountability I considered organizing a challenge. But no sooner had that thought arrived when I was presented a number of challenges from fellow bloggers. I participated in a few challenges in 2010 and had good success with them; nope, I have no idea why I stepped away from them when the calendar turned to 2011. Therefore I've decided to enter a pair of challenges for October to amp up Accountability and get this mission rolling again.

One challenge is the always popular Go The Distance challenge (logo up top) organized by FatGirlVsWorld. This challenge leverages a tracking tool, promotes the importance of reward, and has an air of competitiveness within it that can be quite inspiring.

The second challenge is the Fall 31 Day challenge (logo below). This is a challenge that Clyde and his friend Jessica have partnered up on and they've been so kind to invite others to join them. The essence of this challenge; do something, anything, daily for 31 days to achieve a desired goal.

Why two challenges? Simple, I have great respect for the organizers of them, and I figure my chance of success increases when I put myself in their company. It's that simple. I know I can't do this solely on my own volition, otherwise I'd be where I desire to be by now.

If you need the benefits of a challenge, check them out and sign up. Otherwise, at least follow along with us and do us the favor of lending a hand with Accountability.



Responsibility 199 - Gotta Do It!!

Day 179 - All The Weigh

Kenz, over on All The Weigh posted a questionnaire last week. I've seen it answered on a few blogs, have enjoyed the Q&A and am giving it my attention here and now. If you enjoy this, take the time to answer these questions too in a comment on her fantastic blog, or in your own blog post. If you do, let Kenz know so she can enjoy your answers too.

Here are my answers...

1. What was your highest weight, what do you weigh right now and what is your goal weight?
320 pounds, my last weigh-in on 10/3 was 261.5 pounds; my goal wight is 199 pounds. Whew, 320, i can't imagine how I tolerated lugging that load around for as long as I did.

2. What is your #1 motivation for losing weight?
I probably answer this question a bit different each time when asked, there simply just is not one reason. But if I treat '#1' as if it is the most important reason possible, then that reason would be to do all I can not to die at a young age as a result of my own poor choices. And to a lessor extent because I want to wear with confidence swim trunks without also having to wear a tarp of a shirt to cover up the moobage.

3. Have you always been overweight?
No, although I have most of my adult life. I was 'puffy' in high school. I was fit in my early adult years. That gave way to weight gain in my later 20's and eventually obesity by my mid-30's.

4. When you want to give up what inspires you to keep going?
The fear of posting on my blog that I gave up, that I quit something. One of the greatest benefits of blogging is the accountability factor. The thought of having to say to all who read that I gave up; not a pleasant one in my head.

5. What is the #1 thing you look forward to when you hit your goal weight?
Writing that blog post. I have it scripted out in my head, it will be epic! As well I look forward to strapping on 121 pounds of weight (not sure how) and feeling once again - one last time - how that used to feel as a celebratory remembrance of what I used to be and how far I have come.

6. Do you have support on your weight loss journey?
Yes, oh my yes. My wife is there for me. My kids are too. Our cats benefit too as I give them more nibbles off my plate; yes our cats beg like dogs. And of course, the weight loss / fitness blogging community is in my corner in a big way too.

7. What is your favorite exercise?
Weights, free weights over machines. I love feeling strong and acting strong.

8. What is the most important thing you have learned on your weight loss journey?
Choices, it all comes down to choices. You have the power to choose, nobody forces you to eat crap and lay around like a pile of it. The program, the diet, the exercise, the secret to succeeding is not in any of them. It is within you. CHOOSE one that you feel good about, CHOOSE to make up your own, but just CHOOSE to get up and move more and eat smarter.

9. What is one thing you have given up that you miss the most?
Ordering at the drive thru and getting your feast within 38 seconds. That instant gratification stimulus of the fast food world is as addictive as the food itself. Eating healthy takes more effort, time; and it should. Being healthy, being happy, being alive is an amazing reward and the best rewards come from passionate & determined effort.

10. What is your strategy for losing weight?
I follow no plan because I find them to be boring and not very fun. If I can't have fun doing this then take me back to 320 please. Let me tell you something, I am having allot of fun. What fuels the fun is myself, I believe in myself. I simply believe in myself to make the choices necessary to get healthier each day. Think about that for a second... believing in yourself, how simple is that? Simply I choose each day to eat less, or burn more, or both. Keeping it that simple removes allot of stress from the mission.

The hardest part was realizing that this is what I want. You have to want to be healthy more than you want to just eat food to eat food.... Until a person can say that then he/she hasn't made the commitment needed to succeed; I myself have made that commitment. I've said it before, many have, getting healthy starts mentally; realizing why you want to get healthy and what it is going to require from you. If a person doesn't know how much, or how little, work this will be... how do they know they are ready for it?

Healthy weight loss does not happen by accident. We have to get ready for it, do a little homework. Know why you want it, what is involved is, and how you will achieve what you want. If you've done that, you've done the hard part. Now, if you believe in what you have come up with, you've set yourself up for success. All that is left is the simple part, commit to your belief in yourself and go gett'em.

Responsibility 199 - Gotta Do It!!

Day 118 - We Win When

Yesterday Christine asked me this; "So, um....what are you doing this week to ensure that when you step on the scale on Sunday that you'll see a loss? Because you came out even last week, right?"

Now that is what I call great; friends holding friends accountable. Thanks Christine. And to answer your question, here is what I have been doing…

Exercised on Tuesday & Thursday. Tuesday was the mosquito walk I blogged about and yesterday was a lunch time walk. Both about 2 miles. Accountability consideration; not enough. Argh, it is true, just that plain too; not enough. More cardio will be had today & tomorrow and a stint with the dumbbells will be had too - promise!

Food has been good this week, not great and not bad. I have found that I am being tempted more and pondering giving into to temptation more as of late. Not sure why, perhaps all of the change influences I blogged about yesterday. Really I don't want to ponder that too much as it feels like I am searching for excuses.

Certainly I have no excuse for any giving in to temptation of which I can cite two instances this week. Our team at work went out earlier this week to welcome a new hire to the team, and beer & pizza was everywhere which I did dabble in. I didn't dive into it as I would have in the days of old, but, if honest I dabbled more than one who is looking to drop pounds ought to have. The other was whipping up some homemade Mac N Cheese for the wife & kids for dinner, I think it was Monday, and then having that as my dinner too. Lately when doing something like that for them I've usually whipped up a salad for myself. That night we had no salad fixings in the house, so I had a small bowl of that sinful nonsense. Weak, that was just weak of me!!

Yesterday, thanks to Christine's poking me accountability nerve early in the day, I decided to make it a two'fer. I had two salads yesterday, one for lunch and dinner each. Would have been bad if I had two for lunch or two for dinner, no? The picture up above there, that is lunch. The one below here, that was dinner. I love mozzarella & tomatoes, a near perfect pairing if I ever tasted one.

Today will be just as good as yesterday I am certain. Um, no, it will be better; why not?

It is reflection like this that makes the difference in the success of a mission. It is people like Christine asking one simple & direct question that make the difference. It is that which will make the difference this time around which we all seek, I know I seek it.

This reflection has inspired me to title today's post, "We Win When"

We Win When - We blog, when we share our successes & struggles. We all need help, knowledge, accountability & an avenue to vent. Blogging gives us that and we get more of what we need when we give & take with those we follow.

We Win When - We say immediately say No to temptation & then say Yes to a better choice. Saying No should not be negative, it should not leave you feeling left out or punished. It should in fact feel good & empower you further. Following each No with a Yes enables that.

We Win When - We have fun with the changes we are making to our eating and exercise habits. Forcing ourselves to eat food we despise or perform exercises we dread or are not yet capable of doing, there is no fun there. Find the healthy choices that you can call fun, and have at them.

We Win When - _____________________________

You fill in the blank, We Win When ?

Responsibility 199 - Gotta Do It!!

Day 72 - Who's got two thumbs...

Yesterday, Sunday morning I went to breakfast with my Cousins, Aunts & Uncles. A casual affair at my Aunt's house, a good time. For lunch the kids had a hankering for Chinese buffet. They really know how to corner a fat man trying to get better. But I had no reason to say No other than to avoid my own temptations so I took them. Not allot of good choices at these two events but I did Ok. All in all between the two meals I may have exceeded my caloric intake by 100-200 calories. Not great, but could have been so much worse.

In the afternoon, back at home, digesting comfortably, blogging casually, I am in a word; relaxing. And then I come across Kyle's post. I read all of Kyle's posts as they are always a good read. I read and read and get to the end. Huh, Who's got two thumbs? That is what Kyle laid down as a challenge in his post Sunday. Read it if you didn't.

Great, just great. There I sat relaxed, I mean I was really relaxed. But No; Kyle couldn't just let me sit and relax. Oh no, he has to challenge me to do something with my thumbs of all things. Fine!

I've had this alternate exercise in mind for a few days, so why not give it a go today since Kyle can't just let me relax. There is it, the view looking up at Stanton Hill. Not a huge hill, just 100 yards from base to summit, about a 25 degree incline; it is big enough. The idea is to walk up & down it as many times as I can in 30 minutes...

Hmm, is this a good idea? I mean come on Kyle, it's 85F, it's humid from the morning storm, the sun is bright in a near-cloudless sky, and I am dressed in black shorts and a black t-shirt. Need to think about this...

Well, Kyle needs some thumbs, so up I go. What goes up needs to come down, the view from the top; I started the climb at that soccer net you see below the summits horizon...

Up and down and again and again. Sixteen times up, sixteen times down. Sixteen is what I managed to get done in 30 minutes. Some where around trip up number seven I was sweating enough to water the grass I was trampling below. Trip nine, I was cussing the steam rising from the grass. Trip thirteen, I was cussing out Kyle; Dude I was relaxing - what am I doing here?! Oh yeah, so Kyle can have this shot...

Ok Kyle, so it is not two thumbs but rather one thumb and a little finger, my other hand is working the cell camera. So this hang-loose thumb upgesture is what I've got for my man Kyle. The soccer net was perfect to lean against while I wiped my face, caught my breath and got Kyle his shot. 

Oh, I have another shot for Kyle, a smile...

Ugh, that wasn't a smile. That was supposed to be a wink and a smile. Note to self - don't wink, never wink, you look like a constipated walrus when you wink.

Here is your smile Kyle, it isn't much better, actually it may be worse, but it is all yours...

So there you have it Kyle, my victory thumbs up for keeping myself accountable to getting it done yesterday.

Kyle, You Da man, thanks...

My challenge to all of you, get Kyle the thumbs he deserves!

Responsibility 199 - Gotta Do It!!