Stego's (comments, of course, welcome) WW thread...

[DoeWDW]

I am sitting here in tears, for you, for your son, for all that you've obviously been through.

You are a wise man. You realize that life is precious and you seem to be doing all you can to set a good example for your son in so many areas of life. He will be a better person because of all you've been through and all you are teaching him.

I'm glad you felt free to share this in your journal. Being healthy is about a lot more than food and exercise. It's a journey that is woven through all aspects of our lives.

Your son is a very lucky boy to have you and your wife.

 

[sharoncity]

Wow Stego!I watched that episode with my DD (11 yrs old). We talked a little about the drinking. She knows her uncle and grandfather are reformed alcoholics. We taught the kids from a young age that beer makes Uncle Bud sick. He can't have it. Same with Grandpa. What she doesn't know is that her great grandfather and great grandmother were also alcoholics. I do want to sit down with her and talk about alcohol and drinking. She needs to understand that there is a gene in her body that has the capability to make her an alcoholic. Casual drinking with friends can turn into something TOTALLY different for her. She may not be able to just do it cause everyone else does..... I have been planning on having this conversation with her for quite sometime. Not sure how old she will be when we have it, maybe within a year or so. Just wanted you to know you are not alone.

Props to you for stepping up to the plate, sobbering up and taking care of your son. It was hard, but you did it. You can never take away the insecurity that the natural mom put there, but you can minimize it. You are doing all the right stuff - talking with him openly, setting good examples, spending quality time with him.

for you and for sharing this with us. It is all part of your journey as you well know. Writing it down, acknowledging it, helps you to move past it.

I hope you have a great day today! We are here for you whatever you want to talk about or celebrate!
TTFN-
Sharon

 

[stego]

I realize IT IS a journal. I didn't realize, though, that indeed my emotional feelings of my weight loss would be so significant. Or maybe I'm just a little over sensitive. Probably. One of my character "builders" is my AMAZING ability to project and analyze. Another way to call it is making mountains out of molehills. Who'd thought?
Well, I did say last time I'd journal about more weight loss, eating and excercising, and so here it is.
This past week I felt like I was back on track. Of course, I had my moments-a cookie here, a small chocolate there. And a time or two some of the entree choices were NOT the most healthiest.
But I noticed that my waist line was telling the tale. We'd made plans to go camping this saturday night-but a system came in with some heavy thunderstorms and a good cool front. My wife basically put it: I don't want to drive 5 hours so I can sit in a tent all night. I was leaning all those lines, but thought it important to ask what she thought. So we kept ourselves busy with errands, cleaning the house, and going to see Home on the range. I actually did enjoy the movie. We didn't have a problem getting in to see it, either. I got this great idea about replacing the parts on my outdoor grill. We spent some time looking for parts-and when I actually got into DOING it, I found to my regret that the damage was far more than I thought. Basically, no grilling sunday night until I get another part. I do use the grill quite often, and it helps with our new diet. The skies cleared sunday-though still cool in the AM. I decided to take the family down to the hike and bike trail to ride the big loop. My wife did very well. We saw lots of families out, more than I'd ever seen. The weather was just perfect. We took our time. By the time we got back, it was time to work on the bushes and fix the grill. I'd invited my mom over to eat sunday dinner with us-and after spending WAY too much time on the bushes-found myself with limited time to fix our dinner. Oh, yeah, I guess I better talk about that weight loss.
My wife went to her meeting first, while I stayed and cleaned the house. She came home very happy, as she'd lost 2.4 lbs. this week, and was getting close to her pre-WDW goal of 20 lbs. She was a little upset that I'd NOT left her much to do, but I was soon on my way out the door to see if indeed, the tale of the tape was correct. After getting weighed, and the lady finally figuring out I wanted to pre-pay for BOTH my wife and myself, I sat down and looked in my little weigh-in book...

and saw I'd lost 2.6 lbs. this week. No, it wasn't the 9 lbs. I'd thought it would be, but it did pull me to my 10% goal and beyond. Also, it brought me within ounces of my pre-WDW goal of 30lbs. After all the ladies shared about their losses, I snuck in at the end, and shared about my 10%. The leader asked me to come up and she was just beaming. I got my key chain-and told everyone I was most grateful for the energy level increase so I could spend time excercising with my wife and son. On the way home, I decided to stop, and get flowers for my wife. I thought it was important to show her how HER weight loss was something to be celebrated. Don't get me wrong, I do buy my wife flowers every week, but I include them in on the grocery shopping. So very rarely will I just go out to get flowers. Part of the journey is also working on having the right attitude-and demonstrating that.
As I was driving home, I felt that it was enough to just reach goal-and that a SMALL way to show my wife just how much she means to me is by bringing her flowers. In other words, stop focusing on myself and start thinking about others.

Our trip is getting so MUCH closer. Those Disney park-hoppers and Universal tickets are just sitting there, in my passporter, on my night stand. I've been thinking about HOW we're going to eat-and figured we should at least bring one meal in with us-to pack sandwiches in my foldable lunch bag. I just picked up a new ice pack to keep the food cold. I figured we can rent a locker to stow our stuff, and get it at lunch time. That would leave us the option to eat one meal from the counter at the park. I just think we'd do so much better with two meals under control. I do know that we will be pretty much on our feet, running around, so I'm not THAT worried about that one meal. I have been scrambling, though, to avoid the early entry days and late nights with the new disney testing thing they'll be doing from May 9th to the 22nd. We'll be there on the tail end, and have no idea if they're going back to their old schedule after that. I have found avoiding those early entry parks on their days makes our touring MUCH easier.

I guess you guys will just have to put up with me talking about how I'm planning on doing our trip to florida for the next 18 days. I will be off the computer for the two weeks we'll be gone.

 

[sharoncity]

2.6 pounds down!!!! WTG!!! You are doing so AWESOME!!!:happy2:
I think you've got some great plans for staying OP while on vacation. I think that is great. Just don't go too crazy worrying about food, that you miss the opportunity to just relax and enjoy. I think we all work so hard the other 50 weeks a year, that we really need to just stop and enjoy ourselves while on vacation. No, we don't need food to do that. We just need to make sure we are not stressing about what we will eat to the extent it detracts from our relaxation.
Enjoy all the planning that you're doing! I always find that I enjoy that almost as much as actually going! It makes the anticipation that much sweeter for me!
Keep up the great work Stego! you are truly an inspiration to me!!
TTFN-
Sharon

 

[wilderness01]

Way to go!

 

[stego]

this time for different reasons. I got a phone call from the vice-principal thursday afternoon. Turns out, our son got in serious trouble while out on a school field trip. He tried to get one of his friends in trouble too. I was on speakerphone briefly, as the vice-principal told me about the situation, with our son and his teacher in the room. She called my wife, as well, who was NOT happy with him. When she got home after her shift, she laid into him. I was numb. I caught myself in moments erupting like a volcano. My wife shared with me yesterday about my temper-and that I REALLY need to work on it in order to deal with our son's MIS behavior in a constructive way. Since we decided to cancel our camping trip last weekend, I made plans for just him and I to go camping. Unfortunately, with no TV, or video games, we were left with the undistracted atmosphere of dealing with each other-him losing control, pushing my buttons, and basically me doing the "volcano" time and time again. Sunday morning he spit out his breakfast and the volcano went off once again. I made him sit in the truck, and the tears came. After cooling off after the "eruption", I sat down with him and told him I was pretty much tired of him making the wrong choices, and that from now on we'd be forcing him too. I don't think that will work either, I think it was more of I had just run out of any kind of patience, and the right way to ask for guidance. I decided to time out-and took him to the ball game. Unfortunately, my wife had to work and wouldn't get home until 8pm. However, I spent 2 1/2 hours preparing a nice meal for her and my mom. I even told my wife that I WOULD DO the dishes, just tonight.

I had some success this week with my weight loss. I don't know how, or why, but it happened. Before I started my "push my buttons" weekend, I went to a super early meeting to meet with my leader about my long range goal. I wasn't quite sure I could get down to 182, but that the real big goal was to shoot for sub 200lbs, and go from there. I know it will take a while, but after saturday, I think anything is possible. I got weighed, and for the first time, the lady said outloud my weight loss this week. She couldn't be right. So I sat down, with my leader, and she was beside her self. I was in shock. It said: 4.6 lbs this week for a total loss of 34 lbs. No! THAT CAN NOT BE RIGHT! But it was.
My son told her I had a small belly now. Last time he said it was down to a medium belly. Uncle Michael, well, Uncle Michael is just Uncle Michael, and we won't go there, as far as belly size. I called my wife out in the parking lot with the sensational news.

I have reached my pre-WDW goal of 30lbs. I'm not quite sure if I could reach 40lbs. Talk about pressure. We're only 10 days away. I think I'd have to not eat a single, darn thing to get there, or bicycle until I couldn't sit down for a week. That might work, though, since I'll be in the parks for 12-14 hours a day.
It would be tough to watch the country bears while standing in front of some guy from Missouri, with his family-hey sit down! I can't-my rear hurts too much!

I think we can eat well. I realize that if we do plan accordingly, with some leniency built in, we'd do OK.
I have made a reservation for the Rainforest Cafe in DD on the friday night we come into Orlando. At that time, I will also make reservations for a Fantasmic dinner at Hollywood and Vine so we can eat there, as well. I'm still not sure what the early morning and late hours are after May 22, so I'm hoping I can find out from my sources in the next 10 days.

I'm even hoping I can resist not getting a park map, because I know where everything is. Oh, well, we'll see.

 

[sharoncity]

Stego, you're 30 pound clippee looks absolutely amazing!!!! WTG!!
Way to handle all the pressures you've been confronted with for the week and not turn to food as your solution. That is a very important lesson to learn for all of us.
Plans for the big trip sound good. Keep enjoying that planning!!
TTFN-
Sharon

 

[stego]

work is very slow, and as I type this, we are less than 7 days from flying out to see the mouse. Too much time to sit here & think, think, and even more thinking. A nice system of showers has moved in, and affected my mood-dismal and overcast.

Things are going fine on the home front with our son. It's more or less putting our foot down in regards to his unacceptable behavior. We're trying to send a clear message to him. Whoever said parenting was easy? I guess it's all about how much we each choose to be involved with our kids.

Last night I said outloud something really stupid to my wife. She'd recently put on some makeup-just a little-but my big mouth opened up and told her I noticed the change and questioned it,
in regards to looking for specific changes in your spouse as far as if they make THOSE kind of changes. This upset her a little bit-and rightly so. (maybe I should stop reading those Cosmopolitan magazines in the doctor's office) I can apologize-but she remains sensitive on her own time frame. So I did say I was sorry-heartfelt; but she still remains wary.

I am going away this weekend for a men's spiritual retreat. I'm not enthused by the prospect of the weather, but hey, what do you do?

This week I put away my work pants for goodwill-the ones I've been wearing for at least the past year, and got out the ones I'd set aside in the closet. (I know, for some reason, I was hopeful-maybe one day). It felt good, to put them on, albeit they were a little snug. Then I realized all the ones I pulled out are the same size-and so in a few months I'll have a nice clothing bill. I'm kinda of in a "inbetween" size right now, as far as my shorts go-and with less than a week to go for our commando touring of WDW and Universal-that's not good. I'm not frantic, but I don't want to bring shorts that are too tight, or too baggy. I gotta figure something out.

Let me say right now I just HATE going to a WW meeting in the middle of the week. The last time I went, I gained, and then at least I had the sense to use my one no-weigh pass the second time. But I can't go to my regular saturday AM meeting 'cuz I'll be gone. And I have to go next Wednesday, and when I get back from my trip, that wednesday as well. So what do you think happened? That's right. I GAINED .6 lbs. since Saturday. Bummer. I held my head down low, all during the meeting. I kinda wanted to let the leader know with visual cues I just wasn't going to say anything. Well, anything that was GOOD. I noticed that meeting wasn't anything like the saturday one I go to. Nobody seemed too motivated, and they had one of those in the crowd who pipes up every other time. Thank god it was only for 30 minutes. I couldn't leave fast enough. But it motivated me to get home, and go for a walk-and finish with some actual RUNNING around the track. I haven't run in two weeks, 'cuz I needed to let my ankle heal. It did, and I ran well. I am going to try and run a mile today-without stopping. I just might have to do it in the rain. Somehow, I got dinner made, and have been OK at my new point level this week.

My wife called me yesterday (before the big mouth thing) to just let me know we're 8 days out. I have done more planning, in regard to our trip. I'm going to surprise them by taking them to rainforest cafe on our first night in Orlando, and then to Hollywood and Vine for our Fantasmic dinner package the following Wednesday. I'm sure we'll do OK. I thought about making a PS at the MK, but I've found that we just get in a rhythm of touring-and feel more comfortable playing it by ear. Besides, our day at the MK is so packed, with seeing everything, and running around, I'm NOT going to worry about it too much.

At the meeting last night, most of the ladies shared they use most of their flex points, and use the activity points, as well.
I very rarely use my flex points, and have yet to mess with activity points. My wife told me she is going to use her flex points for two outings to Ghiradelli's-and I can't say I blame her.

 

[DoeWDW]

Stego, you are a very brave man. I mean that sincerely and with much respect. Many men are not willing to examine the emotional side of their weight loss, or their lives for that matter. You're on the right track and you should be very proud of you.

What time do you normally weigh in on Saturday? What time is the weigh in if you go on Wednesday? Did you know that your weight can vary 2 or more pounds from first thing in the morning to that same evening? I guess I'm trying to say that .6 pound gain may be nothing more than the time of day that you weighed in and you shouldn't let it get you down, especially after the 4.6 pound loss the week before. Keep the faith - don't let every little weigh in get to you, OK? Look at the long term trend - it's a much better indicator!

And now, on to the clippie party!!

A BEAUTIFUL 30 POUND CLIPPIE!!!!

Congratulations!! You're lookin' GREAT in that new clippie and you should celebrate that success!

Best wishes for the mens' retreat this weekend! I hope the weather cooperates and you have a good time.

 

[stego]

Remember that mile I was supposed to run? I usually walk 20 minutes, run a lap to warm up, and THEN make the attempt. For some reason, 3 boys tagged along on their bicycles. They even TRIED to run. Everything went right. I did it! I haven’t run 1mile
without stopping in over 3 years! As I finished (of course, I had to put on that last burst), I felt quite the bit of accomplishment. I was a bit winded, though, and walked home casually. As I said earlier, my men’s retreat was this weekend. The rain forecast wasn’t looking too good, and so I wasn’t sure if I should take my bike. So that morning I went to work without it. But it soon cleared, and I went back home, packed my stuff, AND loaded my bike. I got outta work early, and drove 2 hours to the retreat. I met up with an old friend, and we caught up on our lives. I soon discovered that most of the men there balanced their day around eating (and the bodies showed it). I found my dorm room, and
set up. I discovered that my ear plugs would become a necessity. It was obviously a common occurrence, as a couple of the other guys said the same about their dorm bunk buddies. Both nights it was difficult to sleep. I was asked to co-chair a meeting/sharing session on spirituality. Our meeting was the last one in the afternoon, and by that time, most of the men had gone for naps, etc. I found myself struggling with the right diet choices. I tried to follow the guidelines-sticking to water a lot, and I had brought along some fruit. For some reason, though, both days, I had to go into my flex points. However, both mornings I got my bike out at 7am, and rode for an hour. There were rolling hills, with one Lance hill coming back. That first morning I couldn’t make it up all the way, but Sunday I did! It was quite peaceful, and being outside alone, gave me an opportunity to reflect on how much I have in my life.
(I’m not talking about material things, or going to WDW) Mostly about the two people who live under my roof, as well as the journey that appears I have begun recently within myself. I returned home, after saying goodbye to one of my new friends, and had some quite reflection on the drive home. I greeted my son, and my wife. We spent our Sunday afternoon together, being outside and just enjoying our time together. That evening, for some reason, my time alone with my wife was different. I don’t know if it was the men’s retreat, or the weight loss, etc., but I felt a new sense of closeness with her that I can’t quite explain. (I think it’s more of a sum of everything that’s been going on). Monday evening brought quite a bit of warmer weather, but I was motivated to try running a mile again. This time, I had to earn that mile much more so than last time. But it wasn’t a fluke. One thing that did occur to me is that with weight loss, you’re supposed to go see your doctor. So Tuesday I went. It took 5 tries, and a trip to the lab, but they got my blood. I’ll find out soon the “tale of the tape”. Wednesday, after our WW meeting,
I went walking, and then running. I felt good, and finished strong. The weather has warmed up here a bit, but I did have a breeze that helped. I found out at the meeting that I’ve lost…3 lbs since last week! That brings me to 36 lbs total, and of course,
A new signature clip art. We are leaving this evening for Florida, and so it’ll be two weeks before I post back here. My wife and I will help each other to remain focused, and use our resources while on vacation. Thank you for your continuing support.

 

[DoeWDW]

Yes, I know you're in sunny Florida enjoying Disney World but I'm throwing the clippie party anyway!! You can join the party when you get back!!

:thewave: ANOTHER CLIPPIE!!! :thewave:
That 35 pound clippie is looking GREAT on you!! Your exercise and healthy eating are paying off big time!! Congratulations!

I hope you're having a great time and enjoying every moment with your precious family!

 

[stego]

but we did get back from our trip to Florida. I lost my sanity, though. What looks good for planning on paper DOES NOT transcibe into reality. How I put my wife, son and best friend through MARATHON hell is beyond me. We did and saw EVERYTHING. Well, it felt like it. My wife believed I lost at LEAST 13 lbs. So I waited until this Saturday to get weighed. Talk about dejection. (there's that word again) It appears my body goes through these weight fluctuations. I've seen it happen on our scale it home. It's just FRIGGIN' crazy. While in Orlando, my wife was insistent we go to a WW meeting to get weighed, at least. So I researched it, and found one off the beaten path. It was in a morgue-assisted living home; complete with WW stuff. When we FINALLY got weighed my wife had to explain to the lady yada yada yada...friggin' tourists. For our efforts, after running around after our 9yo for 4 days, my wife GAINED .6 lb, and I gained a lb. Oh, lovely. So, after a week back home, and thankfully settling back into our routine, I was ready to see the GREAT results. It didn't happen. Oh, I got the 40lb weight thingee in my signature, but at the time I felt so dejected. I thought to myself, the lady who weighs me is going to flip out because I lost so much weight. Nah, she just hands me my card, and I look-and it hits me...6.8 total weight loss. Oh, for the love of god. You've got to be FRIGGIN' kidding me! Nope, there it was in black and white. I called me wife and she just said the scale was wrong. After a few days, I've realized my body HAS gone through a BIG change. That big belly isn't there anymore. Yup, it's still a belly, but it's quite noticeable that my body has changed.
It's like it transformed into another size. And with that, the clothes I'd been wearing are big, AGAIN. I'm just about at the end of decreasing size clothes, and have to figure out what to do for the short term in regards to my final body size. What I wear now will only be temporary, and so it's useless to buy a bunch of clothes, knowing I'll only wear them short term. Oh, I know, I have such terrible problems.
After a week of recuperation, I am amazed at the resiliency of my family. How they ever forgave me for putting them through the vacation of insanity is beyond me. Oh, don't get me wrong, we had a great time. But if I could remember a time when I was MORE exhausted, I can't recall. Vacations are just that-a time to relax and recharge. I wanted to show my family so much-and we did do just that. But even getting in better shape like we have-it still took it's toll. By weeks end, my wife and I were on a short fuse, and Friday evening, on our way back from making the long trek into Universal Studios from the parking garage to get something for our son, because the shop was closed when we left two days ago...yup, you guessed it. Tempers flared, and it became all about the way I felt. If I could ever feel like a moron more, I seriously doubt it. For 10 days my poor wife had been waddling around after me, trying to keep up. And then I get my attitude. How she ever tolerates me...
we had some genuine moments, though. One in particular I'll share here:
Part of our agenda in visiting WDW was spending time there while our son had some of his innocence. And indeed, he did.
It was the end of our evening at the Magic Kingdom. 13 hours straight. We were beat. The crowds were packed going down main street to the exit. I was in no hurry to go that way. So we held back, admiring the castle. Across the way, we saw the crowds had thinned out and made our way in front of the castle, leading on over to the crystal palace. Many windows to look in-and they were having a character meal inside, even though it was late. There was Piglet, Eeyore, but more importantly, Pooh bear. Our son went up to the window, waving at Pooh. It was in that moment I did see ever so present the small, little boy in him. My wife took several pictures, as my camcorder had died. We each saw the child in him, wishing to go see his favorite character. I swore left and right I'd take him to see Pooh bear at the next theme park, Disney studios. It never happened, though.

Me and my crazy commando touring kicked in full force, again. What are the chances?

Ok, so I'm back, and some semblance of sanity has returned.

Thank you, again for your continued support, advice & feedback.

Fred

 

[sharoncity]

Sounds like it was quite the vacation stego!!! Glad you enjoyed it and you found some "moments" amoungst the craziness. We like to go to the shore for 2 or 3 days after WDW so that we can relax and recharge before heading back to reality. Just a thought for next time!!!
You are doing phenomenal with the WW!! Good for you. Maybe a trip to WalMart will help with some cheap clothing to see you through until you reach your goal. No sense in buying nice stuff if you hope to shrink out of it!!
Have a great week!
TTFN-
Sharon
PS - that 40 lb clippee looks GREAT!!!

 

[stego]

and the heat returns to Texas, and then some. It appears I have reached once again, one of those plateau's. Seems like I'm pulling out the ole' bathroom scale every day after excercising and it's saying the same thing. Must be broken. After this last round, my body has settled into it's new "morph" shape. I think it's more of the flab really IS turning into muscle. Yeah, right. I'll keep telling myself that. Last night, my wife and I went out to see a movie. That hasn't happened in a long time. On our way over, she told me about excercising too much, and what she heard was the body gets used to it and so it stops losing weight.
She told me she got her 16 week WW thingee and shared about her husband's weight loss as well (that's me). She said most of the women were gasping at 45 lbs. in 14 weeks. It seems like that's not the norm, and so the result was the gasps. Go figure. Me? I'm pushing now for every pound. I think the scale at WW is lying or something. The one at home tells me I weigh at LEAST 8 lbs. less than that one. Something's screwy either way. Imagine that: me fixating on what the scale says as opposed to how I feel. Well, how does Stego feel? I tell you, right now I feel great! I ran 1 1/2 miles on monday, then a brief cool front came in and I ran 2 miles much easier on Tuesday. My goals keep changing: it's more about what I want to do, as opposed to how I look. I want to be able to pound out mile after mile, putting the hammer down, and racing through the woods and creeks on my mountain bike (I swear I'll get to Colorado one of these days). My eating patterns have returned to my pre-WDW weeks, and so that is good. We're making the right choices, and also eating some different foods. I bought some fresh salmon, and my wife baked that for us the other day. I looked in the fridge, and she got some tilapia, I guess for dad's day. Ok, I'll close out with this: We took our niece over her Mickey bear. My SIL looks at me in her kitchen, and her face drops. She can't believe the way I look. She starts in on my bro; he grunts. She tells him THEY need to go to WW; he grunts something about SHE can go. If my bro can ever ADMIT he has a serious weight problem, and then doing something about it; it WON'T happen in this lifetime. He is so focused on pride and justification and can't see straight. There's nothing I can do; and I'm sure after we left; he heard more (he hates that). What seems to work is me taking care of me and minding my own biz. Bro's life is bro's life. That's it.

Thanks again, folks, for your continued support.

Fred

 

[wilderness01]

You have been doing so great. I know, I hate the scale as well. Take it easy.

 

[stego]

I know you wanna do it. Go ahead, scroll down and look at the signature. It happened. It really did. When I went to get weighed in saturday, the lady said hold on, I got to fill out this pink card, and give it to the leader, and she left for the meeting room. I was standing there, looking around, and so went into the meeting room. They were waiting for me. I got up front amid the applause and several women remarked you lost 50 lbs. in 16 weeks?! Yup. I did.

Wait, say that again. 50 friggin' lbs. in 16 weeks?! That must be like some kinda new world record! Like most stuff, I have to do it to the extreme. Go figure. I was hoping that I'd get that this week, as I've shared my body can fluctuate as much as 8lbs. on our scale at home. So I got EXACTLY the weight loss I needed to get 50 lbs. on the dot.

I celebrated by getting a new pair of running shoes. I'd taken the family down to the hike and bike trail to run, between the thunderstorms we'd been having down here. It's been years since I've run on the trail.

But something happened friday night. I got sick. Fever, chills, achy body. Like the superman I thought I was, I woke up fine saturday am, all hyped up to run. However, saturday evening I was running high fever and talking deliriously, with those great chills. I finally got around to seeing the good doctor monday afternoon (took off from work) and he said: strep throat. Oh, lovely. Got a shot, I did, and some free sample of anti-biotics. I felt much better later that evening. Of course, I have been trying to rationalize I can just run out the door again, everything's fine.
Who'd thought?

Lately I've been very fixated on excercising each day. Some days are easier than others, but mostly I excercise to a level that I keep peaking at. I don't think it helps that I do excercise 7 days a week. I think even in my 20's I didn't even do that. I guess for some reason I've gotten it into my head I'm gonna miss something. And, of course the result was me getting sick. I've probably put on a couple pound since saturday-it seems I have platue'd and my body is going to do it's thing.

I've noticed somewhat of an increase in my appetite the past couple of days, as well as some snacking I'm not counting for (my mom bought these cookies and m&m's). I've also slacked off on my journaling and I'm relying on my wife. I told her the last couple of days I've felt really useless-that I'm just existing and not contributing. She told me not to worry about it. For the most part, I listened.

Since March 2nd, I've undergone some changes along with my weight loss. The big ones are diet and energy gain, body shape and physical changes, etc. I've come to find that I have a noticeable change in attitude, about other things, as well. Taking my vitamins and supplements reguarly, balancing everything (is there really such a thing). But one of the biggest changes I see is simplfying my life. We don't eat out like we used to. I've really gotten enthusiastic about my old chef skills, and preparing foods and cooking again. I don't spend way as much as I used to (though I did get those running shoes and have been looking at a new mountain bike). But that's just it. I'm just looking. I went through 1/2 my wardrobe and I'm ready to donate it all. I think some of it is why am I accumulating all this stuff? (my B-I-L had that talk with me some years ago-about "STUFF") So I can worry about how our son will take care of it? I'm realizing, that life means more to me about experiences, rather than material things. I've probably known that for some time, and have been torturing my wife with my dragged out financial amends/credit/debt spiels for years. It's time to start living it.

Thank you all for getting this far, and keeping up with the continuing "saga".

Fred

 

[stego]

At 745AM on saturday morning, amid the crowd. Yup, lots of folks at WW early on saturday. I guess the holiday brings 'em out early. Two days before that, the scale at home told me something else (sounds familiar?) and so I thought it would tell me differently at WW. Yeah, right. This week, again, I caught myself getting a cookie here, a m&m there (ok, several M&M's).
I was also going into my flex points like I hadn't done before.
My excercise tapered off this week, big time. I also figured out I DON'T have strep throat. Oh, if only life were so simple. I'd been in discomfort for most of the week, deciding to take motrin in the afternoons for my aches. I went to church service on Sunday, the 4th, and couldn't find a comfortable position. I just couldn't. I took my son swimming to the pool. Everything OK there. Then, my wife the nurse came home that evening. I told her I'd been having some discomfort-and asked her to take a look. The news was not good. Turns out I have some kinda cyst, and she thinks it's abscessed. Lovely. I go see the doctor today. My wife seems to think I need surgery to cut it out. I guess whatever needs to be done. I just want to get back on my mountain bike and speed through the woods...
it's not going to happen anytime soon. Not even on my other bike, with my son & wife. This is just one of those curves that I have to walk through. I will have to make a more concentrated effort to remain focused on eating the right foods and taking care of myself. This will pass.

OK, I'm sure that is enough of "as the world turns for stego" for this week.

Over and out

 

[stego]

and what the doctor had to say. The good thing is he knew right away what was wrong. The bad thing is that I have to go under the knife. The best news is that it CAN be fixed. I've scheduled my surgery for this Thursday early AM. Recovery should be fairly short, but when I asked him about getting on the bike-he's a cyclist himself-he said at least a week, probably two. So I've spent some time on my bike in anticipation of going through withdrawals. Since I've become more active, it's hard for me to sit still. Yet, in order for me to get back on track, that's what I'm going to have to do.
Somehow I got to my saturday AM meeting late. It didn't matter too much-somehow I got on the scale and it told me I'd lost 2.8lbs this past week. I don't know how, or why, but I did. I had even tapered off on my excercising. So far I've officially lost 53 lbs. I am 40 lbs. away from my goal. I'm also close to going to another level-26 pts. for the day. I am pretty sure that by the end of the year I'll be close to sub 200lbs. I can't imagine-but that's how I felt when I began this journey-I can't imagine. I've had all week to worry about my surgery. I talked with a friend last night-he told me not to worry. Great advice-but I am all too aware of my "human characteristics".
I'm thinking about doing a 5k rundown by the rec center next month, about a month away. I am pretty sure I can finish. I'm just going to have to see how I do after the surgery.

Once again, thank you for your support and encouragement.

 

[stego]

all went well. The next thing I knew, I was in the recovery room,
then herded out the door and on my way home. I've since deducted I haven't rested as much as my wife would like for me to. Ever since I started this, I've had SO MUCH more energy. I can't imagine lying around like I used to, with no energy. I've really had to watch my eating-as my activity has been really limited. I've had some pain from the surgery, but each day it's gotten better. Very soon, this weekend will be here, and I will get on the bike. I am hoping by mid-week I will be able to start running again. With the shrinkage we've found out we have WAY TOO MUCH clothing-and so we're going to have a fire sale this weekend. Everything else I'm selling on e-bay. I listed a few auctions-and people actually bought the stuff! I'm going to clear out those-and take this week to do the garage sale. We're also getting some new furniture for our son's room-he's outgrown the toddler stage (and then some) and this will give us the opportunity to go through his MOUNTAIN of plush critters (and that's not including the years of happy meal toys). By the by, I decided to go with my wife to get weighed thursday evening. That's always been a bad idea; the scale said so: I gained 1.8lbs.
This week, earlier, I saw the scale at home flash for a second under 220. But that's all it was: a flash. I'm not worrying, it will happen soon enough.

So, I'm going to take it easy this week, and rest and heal.

 

[Tasha+Scott]

I just read through your journal and I have really enjoyed it. You have a great sense of humor. I also am on WW. I just joined this past week. I am doing it online though. So far I have really done well w/it and have not felt very deprived. It is nice to read your journal and see how well you are doing w/it. Makes me feel optimistic about my own success. Glad your surgery went well. And don't feel discouraged about gaining a pound. You will be on your bike soon and next time you weigh in you will probably have lost what you gained, plus some!