Day 460 - Kitty Kitty Shout Out

It is Wednesday, seems like a good day for some cat pictures, no?

Up top there you see Crush getting some scratching before dinner.

Below you see Crush & Zinger (w/ lazer-eyes) sitting oh so close to me as I eat my dinner...

My dinner was a delicious Jalapeno Bratwurst and Watermelon; no pictures of dinner.

Yes, I am on a Watermelon quest at the moment.

Before dinner I went for a 2.5 mile walk. No jogging of C25K was in order today. Just needed a good 45 minutes of walking to clear my head from the work day before dinner.

Today & tomorrow I'll be in training at work. Always grateful for training but never does training occur on a day where I feel I can just give up the tome for the day. As for exercise today it will be a day of rest. Tonight I will go see Andrew who is working through his last week of summer school. So there you have it, my day in a paragraph.

I mentioned work which jogged my memory of a photo I snapped the other day...

No, this is not my cubical.

I found it worthy of noting because of the over use if not abuse of sticky-notes.

Myself I dislike sticky notes, seldom use them, but I know some folks use them well.

This is not an example of using them well.

What is on your agenda today?

SHOUT OUT time... speaking of agenda, or plan; let me share with you a link to a fellow blogger who does a great job assessing her positive & negative actions of the day and laying out her plan for the next day. Give JW of Awake For The Dance - The Practice Of Mindful Living a read and enjoy!


Responsibility 199 - Gotta Do It!!

Day 459 - Here Fishy Fishy

I know, I know; I showed you a picture of fish yesterday. But, those fish we did not eat, which is a shame I know. But this fish, this fish I did eat. And it was so good!

Up there you see it as I placed it on the grill. It rests on a cedar planked soaked in water & lemon juice. The fish, Steelhead Salmon, is seasoned with a fish seasoning I bought in Seattle (the fish I did not buy in Seattle), and crusted in Onion & Garlic Macadamia Nuts. The came from Hawaii and from this package to be specific...

Here is dinner after it came off the grill...

Before I closed the grill I tossed in a handful of apple wood chips while cooking to give it a lovely blast of sweet smokiness.

As good as it looked coming off the grill I must say it looked its best when I plated it...

Yes, I was in the mood for fruit with dinner. or maybe I was in the mood for sweetness without the bad news from the sweets in the candy counter or bakery aisle.

That dinner was a great way to cap off a great workout. After worked I got my youngest off the couch to join me for C25K-Week1/Day2. The 93F heat was definitely a challenge. A slight breeze tried to take some sting out of the heavy air but to little avail.

Cameron is a soccer player in high school so you would expect him to look at this workout as a walk in the park. But it was quite the opposite for him. He has become quite out of shape since the end of soccer season his freshman year. Even though he hit his final growth spurt over the past six-months, oh how we hope it is his final spurt; his appetite spurted as well and not with a desire for healthy eats.

Thus he struggled to make it through the 60 second jogging segments and his walking segments were quite slow. He knew it, and wasn't happy about it. Soccer tryouts are in a couple of weeks and the start of his sophomore year  five weeks away; yes summer break has begun its descent for landing.

Myself, I got through D2 much better than D1. A day of good eating and anticipation of the workout helped that progression occur. Later this week I will get Day3  in and conclude the trio of workouts that make up a week. Hopefully I can grab Cameron for another workout; doubt he shares that same hope.

Got any recent successful grilling experiences to share?

What about exercise experiences?

Responsibility 199 - Gotta Do It!!

Day 291 - January GTD Challenge Fades to FebGTD

Snow, all around the Chicagoland area are bracing for the storm being called Snowmaggedon. I am calling it Snowmagator, because I like alligators. What, do I need a better reason than that? As I said on Twitter this morning, "Hello snow, I've been working out so I'm ready for u."

January Go The Distance is now complete and February Go The Distance has begun. For January I only got in 30 of my 40 goal miles. So 75% is not immediately anything to be proud about. Consideration could be given to the fact that my elliptical does not display miles. Early in the month I tried to calculate it but there were too many variables for me to do so accurately. So I defaulted to simple math, 20 minutes equals a mile; although I'd bet money I am moving more than a mile in 20 minutes. But I chose to error on a conservative calculation.

So in January I did 600 minutes on the elliptical which I am scoring as 30 miles, 75% of my goal for 40 miles. In the spirit of building upon past performance I am keeping my goal at 40 miles in February. I'll calculate the miles the same way which means I am aiming for 800 minutes on that creaky old elliptical in my bedroom.

JanGTD also had goals for strength training. I set a goal of 12 sessions, I did 7... hhhmmm, I have to wonder if I failed to record a session or two early in the month. I started the month targeting twice a week with a  stretch goal of three times a week; hence the 12 mark was set. Looking back I thought I at least had the twice a week nailed and I know last couple weeks I have hit three... you know what. I am claiming victory as I know January saw my best strength training month in 15 years. February will be better than January, I promise!

JanGTD also had goals for water, fruit & veg consumption, I knocked all of those out of the park!

FebGTD has dropped the fruit & veg tracking and added a stretching goal to go alongside the cardio & strength goals. CHECK IT OUR HERE!

I am stoked for February, the last full month of winter. No more hibernating going to be had by this healthy-fitness-wanna-be-blogger-dude. NONE! I am awake, and I am moving!...

You awake?

You need help getting up & getting moving?? 

HEY, are you involved in February Go The Distance? If not & in need of a challenge, join us!

Responsibility 199 - Gotta Do It!!

Day 288 - Saturday Scrapbook

Saturday is here, and this weekend I am NOT SICK, sweeeet! So looking forward to some fun this weekend, although I have nothing planned at all... what about you, any plans?

Today I have a bunch of photos for you. Ok, not a bunch, just a few. More than 1, less than 10 is what I am thinking; let's see how many I find. Here we go...

Up top there you see a shot of me from yesterday, just decided to pose & shoot in the mirror. That is not a pic to celebrate any milestone being achieved, nope; it is just a pic for the fun of it. Below here is another from the side striking a dopey smile...

I did not eat this apple-fritter for breakfast...

Instead I ate this Chobani with fruit concoction...

A peek into one of my desk drawers at work, Hot Sauce & Excedrin are essential tools of the trade;
also the name of a bad Red Hot Chili Peppers tribute garage-band...

Oh come on, BOIL ALREADY...

source

My truck dashboard is where Eeyore calls home...

Crime is up and as well so is the attitude of this victim...

source



Last but not least, my weights-workout board...

Always a work in progress...
with the addition of free weight equipment you can see I am still noodling routines.
I also have scribbled in a core-routine including planks inspired by Yum Yucky.
Ignore the shopping list there, I was pondering a new creation; the Adult Ho-Ho Smoothie.


HAVE A GREAT WEEKEND!

Responsibility 199 - Gotta Do It!!

Day 238-242 Read, See, Watch & Be Inspired

Hello one and all! Been a few days since I dabbled into the blogs including my own. This past weekend was a working weekend for me. Every so often we release new or changed technology into our business. When we do part of the zillion things I do is oversee such releases. The good news, we kicked @$$!! The bad news, it killed my weekend time with family, friends and our pets too.

The ugly news, I have felt semi-ill and off-game Monday & Tuesday. I wasn't sick to the point where I stayed home sick. Rather my gut was churning and burning and with it my attitude and mood has been sedate and quiet. I started coming around yesterday afternoon and just in time too. My wife wanted to go out to dinner and the hit some stores to all but finish our Christmas shopping. By the time the work day was done I my mood was well on the rebound and we had a great date night.

A few of you posted/wrote emails asking if all was well; very kind of you to check in on me and make sure I hadn't slipped face first off the health wagon and into a vat of bacon wrapped sausage ice cream. I can assure you I remain committed to getting healthier each day and the scale has been smiling back at me. But more inspiring than the scale are NSV's. It has been a while since I've had one that I felt worthy to share but today, well I have an excellent one...

Take a look at the picture up there, do you see the NSV in that photo? No, not the V-8, Protein shake and fruit I brought to work today. That stuff is all good and minus the shake it is a part of my daily feedbag; these shakes I drink 2-3x a month when so moved and today is one of those days. Back to the NSV, it is my watch! Or more accurately my wrist. My weight loss has made it to the point where my wrists have shed enough girth that my watchband is not only no longer snug on me but it is so loose my watch spins around on my wrist. While this is a very cool NSV, it is also a bit irritating. So I shall soon celebrate by having a link removed from this watchband. Can I get an Oh Yeah!


Now, if that wasn't inspiring for you this fine morning, well then all I can say is watch this...

 

Responsibility 199 - Gotta Do It!!

Day 206 - Full Swing Pride

Fruit Count: 221 - And we have reached 199 and beyond in 6 days. Thanks to everyone who helped in celebrating my 199 days of blogging. Special shout out to Lanie for the idea of a fruit challenge and as well to Mandy for being the lead fruit warrior here. Mandy ate "nine" pieces on Monday to help put this over the top. If I were to give out a trophy for the challenge it would look like that. Then again, after eating as much fruit as she has, Mandy may prefer to not receive such a trophy. This was fun, good stuff.


You were all too kind for not busting on me more for yesterday's fruit picture. When I took it, posted it and went on with my day I truly had no idea what I had done. But some of you were quick to notice my odd 'arrangement' of that fruit, including my wife who texted me asking what I was doing. Oh the jokes that could have come from that.

I have been tagged again, this time from How I Am Losing It. She asked some profound questions, needed to give these some thought. That now done, here are my answers to her questions:

1. What is/was your proudest moment?
The usual answers here are the birth of a child, or a wedding, etc... and those certainly are proud moments. But I shall answer with one that is more specific to a real turning point in my life.

Whats-his-name was on 2nd base, I forget his name yet I do remember not liking him very much. Even though he had run out a single into a double he name may as well have been Mud. Up to bat was yours truly, and I had to go to the bathroom; bad! On deck was the big kid who was hitting like .875, surely he would knock in Mud. Swinging at the first pitch, running to 1st and then to the bathroom was the plan.

That first pitch came inside right at my chest dropping hard to the dirt. Missed me by a whisker of which I had none. A quick check of my crotch, whew; I amazingly didn't wet myself. Looking back at the pitcher as I got up with a "WTH" stare, he waved in apology, fine; he was off the hook.

What wasn't fine was the schmuck whose name I forget on 2d base, he was laughing at me in a way that could not be ignored. Change of plans. Next pitch, it was getting knocked as close to him as I could get it. The next pitch was right down the middle, the pitcher being cautious not to dust me again.

I had to go to the bathroom so bad I couldn't swing at full speed and keep from wettin myself. Thus the bat vibrated worse that usual upon impact. Wow, the ball flew right at the Mud, sailing over his head by about a foot. It kept on sailing too, finally stopping when it smacked into the left-centerfield fence.

I stopped at 2d base folded over in pain, I had never had to go so bad in all of my 12 years. As I gingerly stood up I first saw the other teams pitcher walking off the field and then saw my entire team rushing out towards me. It was the bottom of the 7th (and final) inning. The game had been tied. The loser was done for the season. The winner moved on to a one-game playoff. We had just won the game. All I could do was stand there, get mobbed by my team, and pee my pants.

2. If you could pick any profession whatsoever, what would you be?
Race car driver. What can I say, I am a guy.

3. What's the best advice you never took?
Never take time off from school once you start. It took me 19 years to complete my bachelors.

4. If you could have one do-over in life, what would it be?
I'd have taken a full swing and knocked that picth it over the fence. Never leave anything on the table no matter how bad you have to go to the bathroom.


I will come up with 4 names and questions to tag back tomorrow.

Gotta run - have a great day!

Responsibility 199 - Gotta Do It!!

Day 205 - Fruit To Battleship

Fruit Count: 172 - Through the weekend we have collectively enjoyed 172 pieces of fruit over the the past five days. Mandy continues to be our lead fruit challenger, she knocked down 7 again on Saturday and 8 pieces on Sunday! Can we get to our goal of 199 by the end of day today, or at latest Tuesday; making it a clean week to get this fruit challenge done? Lets make a go at it, pick, pack and munch some winning fruit and shout out how many pieces you eat today!

Today's post will be a picture based affair to get the week off to an easy start. The pic of the fruit there, those are the three pieces I am taking to work today. Those will be eaten for sure, likely another piece or two will find their way in my belly by bed time as well.

This past Saturday I went to the Rollins Savanna for my cardio walk. I had not been there since July. Great place to walk, very well maintained preserve. Chilly morning, lower 40's. Thus I was dressed for the chill, but I cannot be accused of putting any effort into color coordination of this ensemble...

Along the way I realized I had company, my shadow. Keeping pace with me step for step. Hhmmm, can I log double miles for my November Go The Distance challenge?

No, I didn't finish as neat & clean looking as I started, but I did finish the 3.6 mile walk. After 54:49 minutes I completed what I had began. A PR by nearly 3-1/2 minutes better than my walk here. Water, I needed water.

Did you get in any cardio this weekend?

When I home I wasted no time getting some food ready. I was hungry! And here was my meal of choice for lunch; A broiled 'Spicy Chicken Breast' over a medley of peppered veggies. Spicy, simple and filling...

Do you like it spicy?

Sunday my wife and I hung out. First stop for us in the morning was a visit to the YMCA where she is a member. She is a swimmer and gets her cardio in via the water when she can. I decided to go with er using a guest pass. I gave their weight room the once over and had a great time. So many more options there than on my home gym. We noodle the idea of converting her individual membership into a family membership,and we might. The only reason we have not is location, this place is near where she works which is nowhere near where I work. So I am having issues justifying the added cost when I would likely just use it on weekends. Maybe...

Where do you workout?

These next two pics I lifted from a friends facebook page. Any Star Wars fans out there? If you are this is good for a laugh. My kids messed with Mentos & Coke when they were younger, this certainly looks like something they would have cooked up for fun...

Have you ever mixed Mentos & Coke?

Now this one doesn't need much commentary from me. Simply said, times have come along way...

Has anyone ever purposely smiled while washing dishes?

- - -

Have a great Monday!

Responsibility 199 - Gotta Do It!!

Day 201 - My Endurance Video

Fruit Count: 73 - We have collectively eaten 73 pieces of fruit the past two days. Nearing 1/2-way to our goal of 199. Let's keep eating fruit people, it's good food for you; shout out how many pieces you eat today!

Our picture riddle was a good one if I may say so. Anne our Carb Tripper came right out of the gate with a great guess; a ceramic cow moo moo pitcher that pours cream. Now I have seen such a thing, and not just pouring cream. I wish I had one (Ok not really, don't add that to my list for Santa please) for if I had that would've made a great pic-riddle.

Dawn of Fixing Myself Thinner was first to touch on what it is with her guess of 'plastic horse toy or something'. Ann who is Livin' Large immediately followed up with her guess of  'a chess piece'. Then not long after that yet another Anne, Anne of How I am Losing It finished off the completeness of our riddle with her guess of 'a Knight from a chess set'. As you see there, that is indeed what it is. Good Fun. Well done!

Yesterday I got in my second of two committed cardio sessions for this week. My son & I returned to Lake Andrea where I set a challenge for this visit of jogging 1 mile of it's 2.25 mile loop. Not 1 mile consciously, that would be nice, but I am not there yet. Previous visits I jogged .85 of a mile, so I was looking for a slight challenge up for me to make it a mile.

Different from those previous attempts as well was the length of the jogs. Before, most legs were .125 miles; now for this challenge I mapped out four .25 legs; thank you Google Earth. As well as actually completing those four .25 mile jogging legs without stopping (my primary challenge here) was the added challenge to try and complete the loop in less than 29:32, my previous best. Here is the course I mapped out...

Away we went and the skinny on our result is this...

• The four .25 mile jogs: Achieved, all four loops jogged without stopping!
• The loop time: We completed the loop in 29:46 minutes, oh so close but no PR (Personal Record) today.Oh Yeah!

Andrew ran ahead of me at the end of the loop & took a short video of me finishing. Enjoy at my expense ;-)

The heavy breathing you hear is him, the cold air tickled his asthma. The heavy dude in black coming towards you, that's me. As I neared the line & saw him shooting I let out what was supposed to be a laugh but instead sounded like a goat giving birth to a pregnant-moose; a moment to visualize... I also blurted out 'Enough' although I am not sure why. Probably glad the the end was achieved. I'll give myself an Oh Yeah!

Endurance, that is the word for the day. This trait to me speaks to the ability to overcome the stress and fatigue that can come with the effort needed to be better than obese over the span of a lifetime. Sure, it applies to smaller spans too, such as my Lake Andrea challenge there. I've had to build up my endurance to be able to do that. Six months ago, no way. Eating better and Exercising better allowed that to happen. Now six months from now, whether I just maintain what I have now or improve my ability to do better; either way I'll have to endure the effort needed to do so. If I stop putting in the effort, then my endurance recedes and I recede back towards greater obesity. That's not going to happen.

Quickly, this post is way too long already; but here is yesterday's food intake...

Note to self; the "Red Robin Fajita Fiesta Pollo Salad" that appeared to be healthy and which was my dinner actually accounted for 910 (F54, C57, P49) of those calories; ugh! I should've known better, and I do.

Give me your FRUIT and give me your latest OhYeah! moment!

Responsibility 199 - Gotta Do It!!

Day 200 - Take A Swag

Wednesday seems like a fine day to have a bit of riddle with our good eats and exercise. So there it is, it is a thing or thang, maybe it is a this or that, perhaps even a what or huh... you tell me. Give us a guess. No idea what it is, the give us some swag (silly-wild-ass-guess). Tomorrow we'll see is any have nailed this riddle to the wall or knocked a nasty hole in it.

Fruit... yesterday we had a bit of fun on my 199th day here where we called out here, on facebook & twitter to see how many pieces of fruit we could eat. Thanks Lanie for the idea! I counted FIFTY pieces of fruit, including the four I ate. That is about a trio of fruit for those who stepped up to play, I'd call that a huge success. But it is not 199, so lets keep piling up apple cores, banana peels and grape vines on this thing; hit me up with how many you eat today and we'll keep this going until we get 199.


Decisiveness, a trait we have all embraced at times. Question is, are we decisive consistently? In April I decided to lose weight. That fine spring day, April 18th, I took prompt and determined action to do get healthy. Decisive behavior and a serious decision goes together like socks and shoes. No, like Laurel and Hardy. What, you don't know who they are? Hmmm, Mike and Molly?

Nope, not going to say that I am always consistent in being decisive. Certainly I feel I am more often than not. And in being honest there are some aspects in life I am more decisive than others. Family gets my decisive side quickly. Self needs I have been more reserved in being as decisive. That is a fault I have come to believe, one I am working to correct. Getting my butt in gear on getting healthy is proof of that.

Had another good day yesterday. My eating was good and I believe a bit better than the day before. The fat percentage was much better. I'd like to flip-flop those carb & protein numbers, I'd have to change things up further to do so. I take in a great deal of fruit and salads and veg which are primarily carbs. And it has been that way, what you see in that chart, for the most part since April. Those, I think, are high quality carbs so the numbers as you see them here should be fine for the long haul; please do share your thoughts if they differ.

Exercise was part of my day yesterday as well. The home gym routine was owned and as well push ups and sit ups were done. Oh, yesterday I meant to share this photo of me getting home after my walk/jog on Monday evening. It was a cardio session worthy of an Oh Yeah! I crushed my 2 mile loop where my PR of 29:03 minutes fell hard to an awesome late evening walk/jog effort. A new 2 mile 26:41 minute PR reigns and as well my new 1 mile PR is now 13:05 minutes. November has left the station with a full head of steam.

Responsibility 199 - Gotta Do It!!

Day 180 - Aged Banana Bump'n

source

Thursday it is, in case you did not know. You probably knew that did you know that bananas are the world’s most popular fruit after tomatoes? While grocer’s like that they make up 3% of their total sales they are less than happy that bananas account for the most complaints from grocery shoppers. Some just go off at the sight of an overripe or even spotted banana. Fact is that a spotted banana is 6x sweeter than a green banana. So people, don't be shy of the more 'experienced' bananas amongst the bunch.

Yesterday my son & I visited Lake Andrea for some exercise. We followed last weeks walk / jog layout exactly the same. Decided to do this versus increase the total percentage of jogging. Oh I will do that soon, but yesterday I just wanted the challenge to try and be a better time, or, amp up the pace of both the walking & jogging. And that we did, we completed the 2.25 mile loop in 29:32 minutes, beating our best by 1:23 minutes. Oh Yeah!

Bumper Stickers, was doing some bumper sticker window shopping (what you don't do that?) and came across a few worthy of sharing...

Ah, many times in the past I could have displayed this one and related. Start a diet, flounder through it, lose steam, slip and slide and quit before even giving it a chance. In the end, all I did was lose time. Well, hopefully I also gained some knowledge on how to 'not' diet. Or even more optimistically I gained some knowledge on why 'I' quit the diet because the diet did not quit me.

Another I can relate to. In part the bad choices of my 20's & 30's left me really feeling life in my 40's. And when I'd look in a mirror, the show was not a good one. Fine, that may be so. But now I am going to try & reverse this bumper sticker and prove that a better life can begin in your 40's and you can improve how it shows too.

This one is pretty simple to relate to I believe. What do we say, eat less & move more to get healthy. I prefer eat smarter & move more, but let us not split bananas here. Get off the rump roast, eat less of it too, get on your feet, and move. Simple enough?

Well, this one is just silly I suppose. Why did I show it? Because it reminded me of the 1,273 excuses I have used in the past for why I was (still am) obese. Most were attempts to use humor to ease the pain of being obese and change the topic either in my head or with someone else. Have fun, laugh out loud, but be serious about our health - we can have fun and be healthy. But making fun of ourselves and leaving it at that, well that just is not funny!
 

This one you can fold in half lengthwise and just show the top portion in my opinion. Get healthy for yourself. Do it whatever way you inspires you to get it done. Lace on the Nike's and just do it and worry not one ounce what anyone else thinks about how you look, what you are doing, your progress or plateaus or set backs... all that matters is what do you think about yourself?

Source for all of the above bumper stickers.

Responsibility 199 - Gotta Do It!!

Day 171 - Fueled Up Simple

Let's give Tuesday a little love shall we.

Do you consider this to be the second or the third day of the week?

On Monday my eating was good and I did get in some cardio. While waiting for my sons soccer game to start I switched into my walking shoes and did three laps around the high school campus. Three laps in 45-50 minutes covering 3 miles.

Today I offer a simple picture of the simple foods I bring to work each day. Today it is a plum (huge one at that), a gala apple and a banana. Also my daily can of V8 and a bottle of water which I'll refill 2-4 times on any given day.

Simpler foods provide us with better fuel; is that a true statement? Oh I am sure there are some great articles out there that debate this into oblivion. Honestly I am not certain, but, if forced to pick true or false; my gut would have me say true.

As a hobby of sorts I love to get busy in the kitchen. Actually calling it a hobby is incorrect, instead it comes from a desire to eat food that tastes good. I didn't get to be obese eating food that tastes like the rubber end of a plunger.

Many of you know my joy for cooking from my occasional spread of photos of my work on the grill, the smoker or the stove. And believe me, I share only a small smattering of this pleasure here on the blog.

Whether I'm working on a meal that is an all day affair or a quick grab and go, I do try and keep the recipe as simple as can be and the ingredients even simpler. That paella recipe on the 'stove' link is about as complex as I like to take it. Oh I am not daunted by the complex, hardly. Rather my years have brought me to believe that food tastes better when approached & prepared simply. As well my recent mission to get healthy has me believing that the simpler the food itself, the better it is for you.

Agree, disagree? Huh, you want me to pass the Cheetos, now cut it out!

Responsibility 199 - Gotta Do It!!

Day 161 - Sticking My Fruit

Good Morning everyone... and hope all have a great weekend!

Thanks for all of the comments yesterday.Very interesting how we approach the rules of dieting, getting healthy, differently. We all apply rules and most it seems break them in ways that fit themselves. A large debate could boil on whether rules should be bent or broken or not. Debate or not what we all must hope for is that we don't bend the rules all the way back to our former selves and lose momentum on our missions.

Fruit is Fantastically Fabulous Food. If I had to pick one change in my diet over the past 5+ months that has made the biggest bang in my mission it is likely the regular use of fruit. Now I did eat fruit before I started all of this, but not like I do now. Before I'd eat an apple alongside an Almond Joy. A banana surrounded by ice cream and smothered in hot fudge. A handful of grapes to munch on while I grilled the 20 ounce steal I was soon to inhale.

Today fruit is my staple snack. Fruit keeps my body fueled, my mind alert. On average I eat three pieces of it a day. Usually as between meal snacks as I've said and occasionally a fruit salad is made from fresh fruit (never canned fruit, ugh) to go with a meal instead of a veggie salad.

Up there in the picture you see a good old fashioned sheet of notebook paper. A trio of months ago I started peeling off those stickers that come on the fruit we buy and sticking them on that sheet. That sheet is kept at work where I eat most of those between meal snacks. Now that certainly isn't all of the fruit I've eaten in that time. Only 1 out of every 3 or 4 pieces of fruit I buy has such a sticker. So quick math, 81 stickers on the sheet times 4, yeah I've eaten over 300 pieces of fruit in roughly three months.

Why do I do this? Simply because I choose to play with my food I suppose. Honestly I don't really know why I started to do this, I just did. And now that I have a full sheet, I am sharing it with you, again I don't really know why.

Ok, I need to go get some walking in...

Do you like to play with your food?

Responsibility 199 - Gotta Do It!!

Day 136 - Tagged I Am

Excellent day yesterday at the eating and at the exercise. Balance, portion and yum all accounted for well. The dumbbell routine thrashed my upper body quite well as did the push ups. Sit ups too, it was just over a week ago I re-discovered my ability to even do sit ups once again. Now five sets of them are part of my exercise routine. So good day yesterday on the getting healthy front. How about you, was yesterday a good health day for you?

Before I forget, the answer to yesterday's picture riddle; a Strawberry Smoothie!

Jo was the first to guess a smoothie, Lori followed her up with the exact flavor of strawberry. I was afraid that was going to be too easy yet when guesses like cheese, meats, tile and a baseball bat started rolling in I backed off of that fear. And LEGS, a bunch of guesses it was a leg, this I didn't expect and got a great chuckle from, fun! Ok, whose ready for a smoothie?

Let's keep the fun a rollin here; Rapunzel has tagged me which requires me to answer 8 questions about myself then make up 8 new questions to tag 8 of you with! Without further delay here are the 8 she gave to me...

1. What is the biggest change you've made that's helped you succeed in your weight loss efforts?
A: On my blog I have listed 8 changes which I have committed myself to, it is hard to say which is the biggest impacting change. If pressed to choose one, #4 Reward Myself For Success. For me I've come to embrace that being healthy has to be fun, you have to enjoy it if you expect to be healthy for a life time. Rewarding myself when I attain goals I've set, now that is FUN!

2. What's your toughest temptation?
A: BACON!!! I love it, I would wrap myself in it if I didn't think I'd be tossed in a straight-jacket. I still enjoy bacon, but a slice or two a week is all. Not 1/2 pound in a single sitting.

3. What program are you following? (WW, South Beach, etc)
A: None. Eating healthy & exercising, it is just that simple. I do try and keep bad carbs in check, but it would be wrong to say I am on a low carb diet. I've come to learn when you have a food addiction living healthy in spite of it is all about being mentally strong. The program, or non-program, you choose is irrelevant until you have set your mind straight that you are going to get healthy. Not just try & do it, nope, that you ARE going to DO IT. Once your mind is set, then figure how how you want to do it and it will happen.

4. Who has been your biggest fan and supporter?
A: My wife. She knows how important this is to me, to us. Even though she knows that my getting healthy means I will be around allot longer, she still wants me to do it :-)

5. Any naysayers who've attempted to sabotage your efforts?
A: Not really. I read that some bloggers get emails from other bloggers criticizing them for this or that. I have had none of that. I may be my biggest naysayer. Even though I am more confident & positive than I ever have been about being healthy, I still have a daily episode where I tempt myself to have just one trip through the drive thru or order the 20 ounce rib eye just this once. While one of anything may really be ok, luckily I have not listened to the argument because I fear one will turn to two, then three, and then I may as well forget it. Me, only I can sabotage this mission.

6. Do you have a favorite "legal" food that helps keep you on track?
A: Fruit. I have never eaten so much fruit. Fruit has replaced most of my snacks. And I believe you have to have between meal snacks; at least I do. So apples now replace potato chips. Peaches replace candy bars. Grapes & Cherries replace donuts & fritters (OMG I miss fritters). You get the picture - eat your fruit people!

7. How do you see your life changing once you reach goal?
A: See my bucket list on my blog under the page titled: "MYSELF". I will actually be able to do all of that. ALL of it. At 320 pounds (where I started this mission) it was a pipe-dream list. When I get to 199 or below it will be a list of stuff that will be done; whether that stuff wants me doing it or not - I am doing it!

8. What's your dream outfit once you get to goal? You know we all have one! :)
A: Come on Rapunzel, you can't gather this on your own, you have to ask? The swim suit worn in the movie Borat of course! Seriously, I have never ever ever, no way have I ever, never have I felt comfortable in a suit. My hope is that by being fit, I can get a new tailored suit and feel good in it. Not that I'd wear it often, but when I need to, knowing I can feel good in it would be oh so nice.

Ok, here are the 8 Bloggers I would like to TAG next...

1. Dee
2. toosexy4thisfat
3. Blue
4. Keelie
5. River
6. Kyle
7. Michael
8. Luke

Here are your 8 questions, enjoy & be sure to tag other...

1. You can have one super power, what would it be?
2. Which do you see as more important, diet or exercise?
3. If we're forced to become vegetarians by law could you do so or would you frequent the black market for meat?
4. Do you consider the word 'Obese' to be a proper word to define those extremely over-weight, or do you consider it to be improper if not a hateful word?
5. Do you believe that Elvis died on August 16, 1977 or was his death a conspiracy cover up?
6. How much water do you drink a day and do you agree that water intake of 8 glasses a day or more is critical to a healthy body?
7. Aliens have invaded earth and landed a mile from your house, do you run for the hills, do you grab a weapon & charge, or do you try and communicate with them?
8. Is your current approach to getting healthy an approach you consider to be fun and can you do it for the rest of your life? 

Have Fun!

Responsibility 199 - Gotta Do It!!

Day 95 - Attitude Maturation (Food)

I've chatted up my recent exercise a good deal & I feel real good about it. The new PR's are nice, but those are just numbers really. The importance of them is not having set new PR's but rather the fact that I have gotten out there and not only exercised but pushed myself. That's the real PR, the fact that I have moved my butt one more time than I had before. Hey, I steal nothing; that attitude about PR's is one I learned from someone who has been with me my entire journey here & whom I respect; Kyle.

Oh I do talk about PR's like they mean the world to me perhaps, but know that I do so only to motivate myself. No matter how much I may talk of PR's understand I know that what matters is the exercise getting done - period!

Food, food is really what I want to talk about today. Others have done reviews of their changes in eating habits comparing their before meals to their after starting to get healthy meals. I think of this as more than just changing how you eat, but adopting a new attitude towards how you approach food as a whole. So now it is my turn, a reflection of my old attitude of food vs. my new attitude.

Breakfast @ 615 a.m...
OLD ATTITUDE: Apple Fritter & Sausage Biscuit
(Oh how I love apple fritters! Someday I will treat myself to one but no longer are they typical breakfast fare for me)

NEW ATTITUDE: Greek Yogurt w/ Fruit & dash of Granola
(I thought of this post idea right after breakfast, so I had to surf for a similar dish; this is quite close)

Snack @ 845 a.m...
OLD ATTITUDE: Snickers Bar
(I miss these; the best candy bar ever!)

NEW ATTITUDE: Carton of Skim Milk (Moo...)

Lunch @ 1145 a.m...
OLD ATTITUDE: Burrito, Rice & Refried Beans
(I like my refried beans triple refried, and I wondered for so long why I am obese)

NEW ATTITUDE: Garden Salad (salad bar) w/ Tuna (canned) & Sesame Oil

Snack @ 245 p.m...
OLD ATTITUDE: Rice Krispie Treat
(Perhaps the best 'tasting' energy bar sold in our cafeteria for a mid-afternoon boost to the finish line)

NEW ATTITUDE: Apple

Dinner @ 645 p.m...
OLD ATTITUDE: Steak & Potatoes

NEW ATTITUDE: Grilled Chicken Breast, Fried Rice w/ Veggies & Fruit Salad
(I forgot to take a picture of my actual dinner so I had to surf and whack a similar dish together)

Dessert @ 745 p.m...
OLD ATTITUDE: Ice Cream Cone

NEW ATTITUDE: Grapes
(When I have a dessert which is now rare) 

Tale of the Scale
OLD ATTITUDE: 4,200 calories (40% fat, 40% carbs, 20% protein)
NEW ATTITUDE: 1,700 calories (30% fat, 40% carbs, 30% protein)
(calculated using a FitDay account I use for reference when needed)

Huh? Would you look at that. I've said it a few times since starting my blog that I do not count calories and certainly not the energy breakdown. I did it just for this one post, and I am somewhat surprised at what I see there.

I would have thought my diet change would have seen my fat & carb intake drop and protein rise. I didn't expect to see carbs stay the same. Perspective, let me keep perspective. This is just one days eating, so I wont analyze this too much. I am eating more fruit than ever before so maybe that is why my carb intake is the same. Hopefully the carbs I am taking in are better than before. And I am eating better proteins so that should account for the rise in protein and drop in fat intake.

You can analyze the numbers until you have a brain freeze. The part of this comparison that takes just seconds to tag as cause for my losing weight is the calories themselves. Roughly 40% the caloric intake of the old gluttonous me, that is the core of my overall new food attitude which has me on my way here.

How is your attitude today?

Responsibility 199 - Gotta Do It!!