Today concluded the challenge I made to lose 10 pounds in two weeks. As you could tell from my previous posts I was very excited that I was losing weight in a positive direction. I was only about half a pound off from my goal on Friday so I though I’d have no trouble. Well it turns out my body is insane! When I weighed in this morning the evil scale told me I only lost 5 pounds!

It is very frustrating to me to have come so close then blown it. I’m very big on accomplishing what I set out to do, and it is a big disappointment to myself to have not met my goals. My girlfriend tries to encourage me by telling me that losing five pounds is better than gaining five pounds, but I tried so hard and was so close. Five pounds just doesn’t seem good enough. I know my body weight fluctuates on a daily basis, so maybe tomorrow I could be back down closer to 220 but it is too late by then.

I don’t think it would be so frustrating if I didn’t work so hard. Over the past weekend I skated almost 40 miles in total! I did 12 miles on the Greenway Friday, then another 12 miles there Saturday, and Sunday morning I did 5 miles in front of my apartment, followed by another 10 later in the day. In additional to that I ate healthy over the weekend, so since I weighed in at 220.6 Friday I should have easily lost half a pound by skating 40 miles.

I’m going to blame my scale on this one, I must have miss-weighed myself on Friday because there is no way I gained so much weight while eating right and exercising. Luckily I get a new ’scale’ tomorrow. I pre-ordered a Wii Fit and hopefully that will add to my weight loss motivation.

Earlier this week one of the executives from worked commented on my weight loss. When I had first started losing weight it was common to have people ask how I lost so much weight so quickly. Since I haven’t made any big gains in a few months I haven’t heard the question recently. It was only now that I was asked recently that I realized just how lack-luster my answer was.

 

I usually just say I’ve been eating less, and exercising more. That is accurate, however I think it lacks the detail most people expect when asking me how I lost weight. With that realization in mind, I’ve found myself thinking about just what I did to lose weight. I’ve come up with a few answers but I think the primary reason I’ve been so successful is that I made an effort to find an outdoor activity I enjoy doing. For me this was rollerblading, however the exercise wasn’t as important as my enjoyment of it. I am able to go outside and rollerblade every day without getting bored of it. There are ways for me to push myself further, either by increasing my distance or speed.

 

Another secret to my weight loss has been the lifestyle change I’ve made in my eating habits. For me that means not compromising on my fulfilling lunch; but being much more health conscious for dinner. I usually try to keep my calorie intake during dinner down to 300 – 500 calories. This lets my body digest most of my food before I go to sleep and my metabolism slows.

 

I know my entire success can’t be reduced to those two weight loss techniques. I need to think about it some more. Of course, but because it worked for me doesn’t mean it will work for everyone. I made sure I consulted with my physician during my rapid weight loss, and that is always a wise precaution.

Today was another busy day at work. It seems like there is no end to the new projects we want to take on. I keep reminding myself that busy is better than slow and boring, so I need to appreciate that. Between working late this week and the rainy weather I haven’t had as much of a chance to roller blade as I would like. When I weight myself this morning I was down to 220.6 so luckily my healthy eating has helped me achieve the weight loss goal I had set with my girlfriend.

 

I know my weight tends to fluctuate a lot though so I was devoted to exercising today. I made it out of the office about an hour late, but there was still plenty of daylight left. The only problem was that there was a lot of cloud cover, and the way the wind was blowing it felt like rain was inevitable. Despite the prospect of rain I knew that I had to maintain my exercise momentum.

 

So I went rollerblading right after work so I would keep up my momentum and figured I’d just have to turn around if it started to rain. I went to the Alpharetta Greenway, which is a 6 mile cement trail. I had never been to the end before, I’ve made it 5 miles twice so far in the past week, but I always had to turn back because I needed to make it home. Today I was convinced; if the rain would hold off I would to the entire trail.

 

Despite the feeling that the heavens were about to open up and it would just downpour, I continued going. I made it to the end and back without a drop of rain! I’m very proud of myself as 12 miles round trip is the longest I’ve ever rollerbladed before. This did the trick, I feel like I’ve maintained my momentum.

Yesterday I went on a hike to Stone Mountain with a friend from work. For those of you that have been reading my blog all year, you know how much I enjoy outdoor activities. I’ve been very motivated for the past week, this deal with my girlfriend has really helped me. I knew I needed a moral boost while she was away on vacation, and this seems to be doing the trick. I weight in today and I’m down to 224.6 pounds. I’m half way there right at the half way point! As long as I keep this up I will be able to lose the 10 pounds in 2 weeks.

I really believe that this has been the push I needed to restart my weight loss plans. It has motivated my to get back out and be active. I’ve rollerbladed frequently for the past week, and have been on a few hikes. If I keep this up I’ll be thin for my family reunion at the end of July. The hike today was pretty spectacular. I knew Stone Mountain was a lot of rocks, but I didn’t realize we would basically be hiking up one big rock.

As we got higher up the mountain there was an amazing view of Atlanta. It is so different to look at the city from this perspective; it is a stark remind of how small we all are. As we got higher and higher the wind really picked up. By the time we reached the top of the mountain we were having difficulty walking. I felt like if I jumped in the air I would be blown off the mountain.

After living in the Atlanta area for a year and a half I’ve finally made it to stone mountain for a hike. I’m very proud of myself, and can’t wait to go back. Maybe when my mother comes to visit in June I’ll take her to see it.

The weather here in Georgia was beautiful this Sunday so I decided a hike was in order to celebrate the clear skies and warm temperature. I flipped through the pages of my hiking book titled 60 Hikes Within 60 Miles of Atlanta and found some information on the Oxbo Trail in my town of Roswell. This 1.9 mile hike seemed like the perfect way to start the day with some exercise.

The parking area was easy to find, located right off of Route 9. The entrance to the hiking path was slightly less clear. After parking, the first path I notice was actually more of a driveway than a hiking trail. I followed that up a hill and to another road. Right across the street was a mini-park with a monument in it. This was a memorial to the 400 mill workers who were deported during the civil war for invading the federal forces.

A Civil War Monument

After spending a few minutes reading the monument, and pondering the correct location of the hiking trail, I decided to head back down the hill to the parking lot. Once I made it back to the parking lot the real trail was much more clear. Instead of going up the hill I should have gone the other direction. This time the path took me around a bend and onto a gravel walkway. This path looked to be ideal for joggers, bikers, and walkers.

I walked along a stream for about two miles when I found a surprise my hiking book didn’t mention; there was a waterfall and the end of this trail. Right where the Oxbo Trail met with the Vickery Creek trail was what looked to be an old dam. The resulting waterfall was beautiful, so of course I stayed for a while and listened to the rumble of of the water and took a few pictures.

The waterfall on Oxbo Trail

The hike back was as relaxing as the hike in. This path was an out-and-back style trail, so there was no loop to walk around. There were a few small animals along the way; squirrels and birds mostly. I used this hike, along with the nice weather to motivate myself to start losing weight again. I made a deal with my girlfriend to encourage me to lose weight; if I could lose 10 pounds by the time she makes it back from her Florida vacation she would make a picture compilation with images that motivate me.

So the challenge is on, I have until May 20th to lose 10 pounds. Hopefully this will force me into a pattern of exercise and healthy eating again. I had taken a break from weight loss for the winter and just maintained my weight, but I’m ready to start burning the fat again!

This evening I was fortunate enough to be invited to my girlfriend’s place for the end of Passover. This holiday celebrates the Jews exodus from Egypt. I’ve never been to any Jewish ceremonies before, and my girlfriend has been on a kosher diet for the past week so I was excited to hear what it was all about. There were many foods that were new to me, which was exciting because I enjoy trying new things. In fact that is one of my weaknesses when it comes to weight loss; I like the different flavors in food too much.

The celebration I went to involved reading the story of Passover. There is a book they read from (since there were non-Jewish people they read it in English). We all took turns reading a paragraph from it. Between each chapter we all drank a glass of wine; it was kind of like a Jewish drinking game! Once we were near the end of the reading we ate dinner. It really is amazing what you can make out of matzo if you’re so inclined. Matzo is basically unleavened bread, so I don’t think there would be any added nutritional value in eating it, however is sure tasted healthy.

I did enjoy the Matzo ball soup a lot; however my favorite part had to be the desert. There were all sorts of yummy chocolate treats to break Passover. I’m sure it wasn’t the healthiest meal in the world, but I can spoil myself twice a month now. I was saving one of my ‘bad’ days for today.

Today marked my first weight gain since losing weight. My girlfriend and I have been making eating out a habit, even during dinner and I need to stop. With my current lack of exercise, it is very bad for me to eat unhealthy.

 

It had been three weeks since I weighted in last because I knew I have been unhealthy. Today I found out the damages; I gained 7.5 pounds and am now at 137.5. This needs to get reversed right away. I’m going to do everything I can to cut out the unhealthy food for dinner, and maybe start waking up early to go to the gym at my apartment complex.

 

I’m not willing to ever go back to gaining weight, no matter what I have to do. It has been quite the process to get to this point. While I feel very accomplished at 230 pounds, I don’t feel like my weight loss goal has been met. I want to be thin, but just normal. I’ve come this far, and if I lost another 30 pounds I think I’d be almost there. My initial goal involved two phases; the first was getting down to 230 which is the weight I started college at. The second is being thinner than I’ve ever been before. I was never a fat kid, but I wasn’t thin either.

 

My second goal was 200 pounds, and I thought that would be my thin weight. Now that I’m down to 230 I’m not confident that losing another 30 pounds would put me at my ideal weight; I may not be thin. Before I start worrying about that I need to start losing weight again; I should try to get down to 200 pounds then make a determination at that point.

I did an excellent job losing weight for for eight months, however since November I feel like I’ve reached a weight loss plateau. From April to November of last year I went from almost 330 pounds, down to 230 pounds. However since winter started I’ve found it more and more difficult to get outside and lose weight. With the start of my new relationship last month I feel more content with my current weight. At least I don’t feel the urge to get outside every day and exercise.

Lately I’ve also started to eat a little more unhealthy; I’ve made a few too many trips to The Cheesecake Factory, and but at the same time I’m not gaining so I’m not doing too bad. Instead of going out to the unhealthy places all of the time, my girlfriend and I have been frequenting Subway. My favorite sub is a vegie delight on Honey Oat with Honey Mustard sauce. It is only around 250 calories for a 6″ sub.

I’m looking forward to the spring like I do every year. It is always so nice to see the flowers start to bloom, and the leaves to come out on the trees. The leaves are really my favorite part, the way my apartment is situated I have a nice view of the Chattahoochee River when the trees are bare. However, when the leaves start to come out int he spring my apartment feels so much more secluded. I can barely make out the cars from the road, and it reminds me of camping when I sit out on my patio.

In recent weeks I’ve heard a lot of buzz about pills like the Alli weight loss pill. According to the manufacturer this pill this pill makes it easier to lose weight because it reduces the absorption of fat into your body. Since fat has twice the calories of protein, if you focus on a low calorie diet you can dramatically reduce the number of calories you intake by using this pill.

Even with this supposed magic weight loss cure, I’m not convinced that this is ever something I’d try. I have never used pills to lose weight or stay in shape. I take a multi vitamin (when I can remember), and occasionally eat a protein bar after a work out. This has worked just fine for me since I started losing weight back in April, however with the winter upon us I’ve found it increasingly difficult to lose weight. I’ve been stuck at around 230 lbs for well over a month now and I’m ready to take off the weight.

I know it is gross to talk about, but I have looked into some of the side effects. Since the fat isn’t properly digested this results in it coming out less digested in the end. From what I’ve read the side effects can include:

• Gas with an oily discharge
• Diarrhea
• More frequent bowel movements
• Hard-to-control bowel movements

This sounds unappealing to me, but then again everything has a number of side effects. I wish I knew the chance of getting these things. It could be near 100% since maybe this is just how the pill works. For now I’m going to stick to my weight loss the good old fashioned way, by eating less and exercising more. Even if I just maintain my wight over the winter I know there will be an opportunity to lose weight again in the spring.