Here We Go Again...

Yes, that's right kids, we are trying this one last time. I will soon turn 40 and I know enough to know if it doesn't happen by then chances are it won't happen. I am somewhat of a realist in that respect. I have no illusions of what I am capable of.

So lets recap the last year for everyone. January 1st started with a bang and I was off to the races. I got stuck offshore working on a project and managed to lose an astounding amount of weight in a relatively short amount of time by modifying my diet and adding a generous topping of self loathing. I was really kind of awestruck that this would happen considering the fact that in 2009 I ate 1600 calories a day and trained for a half iron man with basically no results at all.

I was a touch confused. I realized that the diet that I was eating offshore was significantly different that my diet every other time I tried to lose weight. I was pleased with the results and tried to duplicate it but I had no luck due to the fact I was lacking a certain amount of will power.

I trained for another half Ironman and along the way managed to lose a total of 35 pounds which brought me down to right at about 230 pounds. I stayed this weight until a cross country trip back in July led to my downfall and the accumulation of 50 pounds of fat. You read that right. My amazing ability to pack on the pounds struck again. I was left at the end of the year weighing right at 280 pounds. That's no small number.

So what's different this year than last year? Well this year I know what causes me to gain weight. Carbs cause me to gain weight. Any carbs that I eat translate directly into fat. On top of that I am generally starving the entire time I am restricting what I eat. Turns out a calorie isn't just a calorie after all and I learned that Here.

I now understand that no matter how hard I try, if I am not doing the proper things I will be a failure. In other words, if I am trying to get to Florida and keep travelling west I am doomed no matter how fast I go. Previously, I was heading west in a hurry.

I have developed a new plan that will get the maximum result from the minimum amount of effort. My plan is multi-pronged and will occur in stages. With the proper strategy I think this will actually be easy.

Below is a must/must not list for the latest plan.

MUST:

• Stay on the diet. Cheat days only make things worse and remind you what you are missing.
• Stay off the scale. Weighing once a month is sufficient.
• Get my 20 minutes of exercise twice a week ( Stage 1)

Must Not:

• Break my diet.
• Lose focus of the actual goal in pursuit of other endeavors.

It's all about the diet stupid

The title says it all, it's really all about the diet. I would say that if you are trying to lose weight that exercise accounts for about as little as 5% of the success of weight loss alone. I figured this out because while training for my half Ironman I exercised about 3 hours a day and never really did lose any weight. Some folks said "well, you put on muscle". This is untrue. I never lost any fat and never really put on muscle. I just stayed where I was at even though I am positive I ran a calorie deficit during that time.

I was just eating the wrong things. Turns out that last statement is a statement of fact. Even though mathematically I was running a calorie deficit I was not losing weight. The only thing that is possible is that the foods that I was eating were bad for me in some way.

After experiencing the weight gain that I did over the holidays and experiencing the small amount of success by cutting calories I decided to change my diet a little. I started out on January 1st and didn't eat anything but vegetables and lean meat. I figured this has got to be good for you and I should drop some weight. After I got over the head aches and general malaise that comes alone with the abrupt diet change I experienced, this seemed to be going OK.

Then I went offshore. I went offshore to an oil platform for roughly 3 weeks. While there I was able (luckily) to consume nothing but lean meat, vegetables and the occasional baked potato. During this time I ate all that I wanted and never once left the table unsatisfied.

Once I got home I weighed. I had lost a half of a pound a day for every day since the first of the year. Due to the fact that my days were really long I didn't get to exercise at all.

I did all of this without exercise and diet alone. I was a bit perplexed. On day 50 I weighed again and found out I had lost 24.4 pounds, just shy of 1/2 a pound a day. All of this was done on basically no exercise while eating all that I wanted.

Turns out what I wanted now wasn't what I wanted before. By saying that I mean that my hunger had decreased to a level that wasn't anything like I had been used to. I just didn't get hungry like I did before. I didn't crave anything and ate just what I needed at the time and nothing more. This has been consistant througout the 53 days.

My cravings are gone. I can look at a cake or ice cream or any of that without the slightest desire at all.

This has been an interesting 53 days. I start back exercising this afternoon and I will keep y'all updated on the progress.

PICTURES TO COME SOON!

I have had an epiphany.

It has been a long time since I have posted as usual I have let life get in the way of my goals again. I have been exercising the whole time. I have tried to eat right but alway seemed to cheat a little on the weekends. Before I knew it on December 31st I was back to 269 pounds. I quit eating a relatively good diet and put on 17 pounds in 2 months.

As I neared the global resolution date of January 1st I decided to think about my diet a little differently. I just would eat like I already had a ripped six pack. It started out pretty good and
I looked at every meal as the one that would either make or break my six pack. I already had it right? It was already mine and it was mine to lose. That was when it dawned on me...

I AM FAT BECAUSE I EAT LIKE A FAT PERSON!

That's it in a nutshell. That is why I have even had to start this blog. That is why I don't have a six pack already. I really looked at my diet as something I did between the times that I ate what I wanted. Because of this I felt perpetually deprived. I always waited for the weekend when I could cheat.

No more.

I haven't eaten so much as a tiny candy bar, had a carbonated drink or a taste of ice cream. I have eaten all I wanted to and have never gone hungry and I haven't craved a single thing.
I just eat like someone who already has a six pack. People that have six packs eat sensible meals of vegtables and low fat meats like chicken and fish.

I have eaten like I have a six pack and I have dropped 18 pounds in the last month. I am still exercising because I am currently in training for a half ironman which happens in April. I will post some pictures of where I am at physically soon.

I will soon uncover my six pack... because I already have it.

I am back...

I know that I dropped off the radar for a while and there is a good reason for this.. I am a new father. That's right my wife and I are new parents and that brings it's own challenges and joys.

Just to recap since I started this the following things have happened: I took a new job, my Dad died, My wifes' Dad died, I got attacked by a dog, My wife had Major knee surgery, Hurricane Gustav put a tree on my house and we became new parents. I don't think I left anything out but I probably did.

I basically had to lay off the entire program as it was structured and delay getting the six pack. During this time I trained for my Triathlon that I had mentioned in previous posts. I can say on April 5th I completed a half ironman in 8 hours and 4 minutes. That is a total of 70.3 miles. 1.2 mile swim 56 mile bike and 13.1 mile run. Yes that's right I did it.

I was one of the largest/heaviest people to compete. I didnt' see anyone any bigger than me.
I trained for this like an animal. My cardio exercise was up to about 3 hours a day some days.

During the week I would typically get up in the morning at 4am and swim 1.2 miles in the pool. After work I would do a spin class for an hour and then run 5 or 6 miles. I did this for a couple of months.

After all that time I learned one thing. DIET IS EVERYTHING! It really is. I know this because I didn't lose an ounce the entire time. I ran my triathlon weighing 265 pounds. I think I actually gained weight. I was dumbfounded. I was actually eating what I thought was pretty healthy. I found out during all of this that I am carb "sensitive". What I mean by that is even though my caloric intake was less than my output, I didn't lose weight. I know this seems like a mathmatical impossibility but it is true.

I am now done with my triathlon and I still want my six pack. I told you all this might take a while and it has. I don't quit very well and I am going to see this through..

Stay tuned.

Sorry I have been gone so long.

I have been less than disciplined in my posts but there is a good reason. As you all know we had a run of bad luck around my house that lasted almost a year. It culminated with hurrican Gustav putting a tree in my house and my wife totaling our vehicle that we had paid off two months prior. Oh and the minor knee surgery my wife had turned out to be not so minor. According to the doctor she will never run again. For someone that had just discovered the joy of marathon running this was kind of a blow. That is the reason that I was lax in my posting. I had to travel back and forth home every day to take care of her for a month and a half so I didn't workout either.

Throughout this all I kept my optimism but it was tough.

Since my last post I have been doing some training and other stuff.

I ran a half marathon in Maui. This was brutal. I didn't get to train at all for this. Imagine someone coming up to you and handing you running shoes and some shorts and telling you to run a half marathon. That is about what it was like. Against my wifes advice I didn't eat anything before running it either. I was a mess. I ended up walking about 1/3 to 1/2 of it. I just ran out of gas. On the last 2 miles I started cramping which was fun. I did finish though, in all of my fat shirtless glory I finished.

I also rode 150 miles one weekend to raise money for Multiple Sclerosis. I did this with no prior training other than a 15 mile bike ride to get my bike adjusted. Believe it or not it was fun. The doctors are pretty optimistic about being able to get the bike seat out of the crack of my butt too.

I am going to start posting pictures in the next week or so.

Diet-

I have modified my diet yet again. I am eating considerably less than I was before. I think this will help drop the weight and I am going to let my body tell me when I need more calories.
I know what running and not having the energy feels like so I can use that as a gauge.
This is what I eat during the week. On weekends I slip a little bit but I think that is acceptable.

Breakfast.
1 bagel with 2 tablespoons of lowfat cream cheese- about 400 calories

Lunch
1 protien shake about 400 calories

Dinner
1 package of rice, vegitables and chicken otherwise known as a steamable pre-packaged frozen dinner. They are tasty have very few perservatives and only have about 400 calories.
1 bagel just like I eat at breakfast- about 400 calories

In total I eat about 1600 calories a day. I seem to stay pretty satisfied as long as I don't change my diet up too much. On top of this I have the energy to exercise.

I have been exercising as well.

My schedule will look something like this.
Saturday- Bike and run - currently 25 miles and two miles respectively
Sunday - off
Monday - Run - 5 miles
Tuesday - Run - 4 miles
Wednesday - Swim
Thursday - off
Friday - whatever I feel like I need

All workouts are at least 45 minutes to 2 hours. I know this seems like a lot for a guy that weighs 250. I am in pretty good shape I am just fat and that is all there is too it.

With my diet and the exercise I am running a calorie deficit of about 1400 calories a day. This should give me the weight loss I am looking for. If I start to lose any muscle I am going to add more calories via protien.

178

I know that you might think having a random number as a post title is silly but let me explain.

When I started this blog I set out to have a six pack in short order. If you have read the posts below life got in the way and I am a little unhappy about that but that's how it goes.

If you also read back a page or two I mentioned that I might like to try my hand at a triathlon. In reality I was dead set on doing a triathlon and dropping weight (getting a six pack) was part of my master plan. I figured that moving my body 70 miles would be easier if I didn't weigh as much as a small Hippo.

Here I am with 9 months to go before a my triathlon and I have to be able to swim 1.2 miles, bike 56 miles and then run a half marathon. For me this is no small feat. I am not really built like an endurance athelete if you haven't noticed.

That is why I have switched gears a little bit and modified my workout. As it stands for the past two weeks I have started running an biking in "training" for my triathlon. I will still have the goal of getting a six pack the method has just changed. I will be doing more "typical" exercises that people do to lose weight. I will still try to do the push ups and sit ups but I will do them according to how I feel.

Since I got a place in New Orleans to stay during the week I have changed my diet. I don't have my wonderful wife to cook for me so my diet is rather spartan in nature. It goes like this.

Morning- protien shake- I exercise in the morning and cooking breakfast isn't an option due to time constraints
9Am I eat an apple
Lunch- I eat chicken breast and steamed vegtables. Usually about 2 cups, Sometimes I add spaghetti with plain sauce.
3pm I eat another apple
For dinner I usually eat I eat chicken breast and steamed vegtables. Usually about 2 cups Sometimes I add spaghetti with plain sauce.
If I get hungry for something sweet I will have a peanut butter an jelly sandwich. with a glass of milk.
I really have to watch what I eat and make sure I eat enough. If I don't I just don't have the energy to exercise.

As of now this is my training schedule
Monday- Afternoon run- usually about 3 or more miles
Tuesday- Morning run - 3.2 miles Afternoon Bike - Brisk pace for 1 hour or more
Wednesday - This is going to be my swim day but I haven't found a pool yet
Thursday - Morning run 3.2 miles
Friday off
Saturday - long run- Last week was 4.5 miles and I am going to try to add a mile each Saturday.
Sunday I might take this day off depending on how I feel.

As for the 178, that is my pulse rate when I am running a 10 minute mile. At least that's what it was this morning.

Game on people!

For everyone that reads this you are probably thinking that I am a slacker and didn't hold to my goal of getting a six pack. For those that doubt I should recap the last few months that my wife and I have had and maybe you will understand the break.

In February I changed jobs and I had to commute 220 miles each day. In early April I was bitten on the left forearm by a dog. It got infected. In late April my father passed away after a lengthy illness. During this time my wife made a few trips to Missouri to visit her father who also had cancer. In June I started to suffer from an irregular heartbeat. ( it lasted for a week) It was probably due to stress and the fact that during the week I usually slept about four hours a night. I was diagnosed with severe sleep apnea (this means the sleep that I do get sucks)
At the beginning of this month my wife's father passed away. A few days ago my wife found out she has to have surgery on her knee.

Other than that it is all good.

On a brighter note, I have found a great place in New Orleans and I spend a few nights a week there. This has allowed me to exercise on a regular basis. I am finally getting back in the swing of things and I am tuning out my schedule and diet.

I will update again in a few days.