Wednesday, February 29, 2012

Wednesday Weekly Update #2


Weekly progress update.

Today's Weight:  428.2 LBS
Weekly Loss:  2.4 LBS
2012 Loss:  5.8 LBS
Daily Calorie Target: 2200
Average Calories per day: 2288

My highest calories consumption was on Saturday when we did All you can East Sushi.  I did eat less than I have in the past, but still managed to consume almost 2000 calories in one sitting.  This will be the last time doing that for a long time.

My highest burn for the week was both yesterday and today when I did 410 calories on the stationary bike.

Starting to get back into the groove of working out in the morning before work and I like it.  I do feel more energized during the day, but am more tired in the evenings.

Looking ahead, next Tuesday is the starting weigh in for a weight loss competition called the Biggest Winner which is part of the Corporate Challenge here in Las Vegas.  Its a 10 week competition and each company has a 5 person team.  Just what I need - a bit of extra motivation to Git 'R Done!



Sunday, February 26, 2012

Good News

The results from the MRI show some fluid, a bit of arthritis and a small anomaly on my meniscus.  According to the doctor there were 3 options - Surgery, a cortisone shot and physical therapy, or give it more time to heal.  I opted for the third option.  I explained to him my main fear was doing more damage and he said that I wouldn't.  So I've been on the spin bike the last 2 days.

I'm starting slow as I don't want to over do it - 7 minutes yesterday and 9 minutes today.  My knee is sore, but since I'm not doing further damage, its time to HTFU and ride!

Glad to be back on the (spin) bike!

Wednesday, February 22, 2012

Wednesday Weekly Update #1

This is the first in the series of weekly updates for my progress in losing weight and getting healthy.  I'm going to be playing with the formatting and the content of these updates, but the goal is to list what I've been doing and how things are progressing.

Today's Weight:  430.6 LBS
Weekly Loss:  3.4 LBS
2012 Loss:  3.4 LBS

I'm thinking about listing my highest and lowest calories consumed and calories burned each week, but I don't have the data right now.  Hopefully next week.

As this was a starting over week, it was a bit tough trying to keep within my newly reduced daily allowance of 2200 calories each day.  I was able to do it 4 out of the last 6 days.  My biggest intake was 2516 yesterday because I had a cupcake in celebration of a friend's birthday.  While this was over my target, it was still less than what My Fitness Pal tried to automatically set my daily calories to.  Their suggestion was 2587.

As for calories burned through exercise, that was zero for the week.  Hopefully I'll get good news Friday and I can change that for this coming week.  My biggest fear has been that if I were to exercise through the pain, I would be doing more harm and I didn't want to take that chance.

Overall that's a 3.4 pound loss for a week without exercise.  I am very happy about that!  I do find myself having to managing my expectations from watching the biggest loser where, through intense training they achieve miraculous results.  I don't have the hours to devote to exercise that they have.  I will be happy with 2 to 3 pounds per week as I head towards a healthier and lighter me!


Thursday, February 16, 2012

Waiting...And a fresh start

I have been waiting for my knee to get better.  I did something to it back in December and thought I just needed some time to heal, so I have been waiting for it to heal and it hasn't.  I broke down and went to the doctor to see about it 4 weeks ago.  He said there was a problem and referred me to an Ortho specialist.  Between waiting for authorization and dealing with his limited calendar it was 2 1/2 weeks before I saw him and he ordered an MRI after a non-committal "you might have torn something in there."

I then had to wait for another referral for the MRI which finally came through and I have it scheduled for tomorrow (Friday) morning.  Of course then I will have to schedule another appointment with the Ortho Doc to have him read it and recommend treatment.

While I have been waiting, I have noticed that my tendency to consume calories has not abated.  Where before I was maintaining my weight with a bit of exercise, I have now been gaining.  My estimate is 15 lbs since the injury.  This is not good.  This cannot continue!

So, today marks another fresh start for me.  I had planned to start over in January, but hadn't had the motivation without being able to ride either the spin bike or on the road.  I realized today, after reading Fatty's post about a possible competition, that I don't have to wait to restart (or continue) my weight loss journey.  Obviously, since I so enjoy riding, that will be a big part of the exercise side of the equation, burning more calories, but I can also address the intake side of the equation and frankly should have been doing so all along. So today marks a fresh start and my new beginning towards a healthier me.

Today's weight is 434 lbs.  No excuses, no hiding from it.  In the last year and 4 months I have gained back 46 of the 100 lbs I lost leading up to Pumpkinman in fall 2010.  I have a new goal:  Lose 120 lbs by Pumpkinman this fall. That means by October 20, 2012 my weight should be under 314 lbs. My plan is to post weekly updates of my weight and include highlights from the week's calories - both burned and consumed.

Thank you for being the trigger to hold me accountable to achieving this goal.