When I was young I owned a motorcycle or two…not your slow cruiser, but fast sport bikes made for speed and corners. I have long missed those days and lately have been yearning to be back on a bike. Perhaps it is just a midlife crisis of sorts as I move in on 36 years of age, but I never really stopped missing motorcycle riding. An agreement I have with my wife has recently come up again and could be the best motivator of them all where my weight loss is concerned. The deal is, if I hit my goal weight, I get to buy whatever motorcycle I want. That was the deal anyway and that is changing now.

I recently found a bike for sale that I have been eyeballing for some time, a Kawasaki ZX10R. I found one that is a super good deal and I’m thinking of buying it. Now being that I’m still 300+ pounds, it will most likely sit in my garage next to my mountain bike until I get down to a comfortable riding weight. For me this might just prove to be the biggest motivator of them all, especially for getting back on bike riding in the morning for exercise. After all, if I have to see that beautiful sport bike sitting next to my mountain bike every morning I guarantee you I will be extra motivated to riding longer and harder to get down to my goal weight faster!!

Motivation comes in all forms and I can always use more!

I awoke this morning feeling as if the weight of the world had been lifted from my shoulders and that it was a day of new opportunities. I had been feeling horrible while off Medifast, feeling as if I had failed even though I had every intention of rejoining the program. Today I am confident I will be triumphant in my battle against my obesity and I have a renewed feeling of self-worth. Knowing that even though I’m fat, I’m doing something about it makes all the difference in the world.

In my short time off Medifast I enjoyed some carb-rich foods and I noticed an immediate difference in the way I felt. Although I was watching portion sizes when possible and eating more frequently, I noticed that at times when I ate carb-heavy or starchy foods I felt drained of energy and lethargic. This definitely shows me that I have some hyper carb-sensitivity and need to monitor what I eat for the rest of my life. Being on Medifast and a high protein diet, then going back showed me just how much food affects my physical and mental states.

I will not let anything stop me from goal weight. I think these past few weeks have just proven to me that I have what it takes to continue in the face of adversity and that I have the drive to reach my ultimate goal of a healthy weight and lifestyle overall. I’m feeling great!

I’m just now finishing my nearly 2 week dosing of Prednisone (steroids) for my Asthma and I am almost fully recovered from my flu/cold/asthma illness. I can tell you that it is not a fun experience for a variety of reasons and that I am ready to get back in the saddle and continue on my Medifast weight loss journey.

More than one person has asked me in the last couple of weeks why I would stop the Medifast program just because I was sick. There is a long and short answer to that question and I will give you both. The short answer is, I knew I was going to gain weight from taking the steroids to treat my asthma.

The long answer is a bit more complicated. You see, I have a habit of associating things in my life. For one reason or another I find that I associate experiences good or bad with specific actions or events in my life. I don’t mean to do it but I do and it creates a very black and white way of filing things in my memory. For example, if I were to go to a concert and I had a poor experiencing getting my tickets through a ticket outlet, I would associate that bad experience with concert going in general and you would be hard pressed to get me to go to another concert.

A real world experience that happened recently involved ping pong. My neighbor got a ping pong table for Christmas and all of the neighborhood men were over playing it every night after work in his garage. I finally made my way over to play and found that I was the only one in the group that didn’t have this long history with the game and I quickly found myself being mocked for my inability by one person in general. Rather than focus on getting better or laughing it off for innocent ribbing, I decided I just wouldn’t play it any more because the experience was quite negative. That is just how my brain works.

So, all of that having been said, let me get back to me and Medifast. Knowing that I was going to gain weight no matter how well I did on the program as soon as I started taking the steroids, I decided to stop the program to prevent myself from associating the program with failure and quitting all together. I know it sounds strange and childish but knowing myself as I do, I know I would have blamed Medifast (quite inappropriately) for not working as soon as the weight from the meds started to pack on.

So did I gain weight off the program? Of course I did. I have had a long history with taking Prednisone to treat my asthma and each time I have taken it I have gained a significant amount of weight which didn’t come back off for weeks. I weighed in this morning at a disheartening 328.6 lbs. That is about a 12lb gain in 2 weeks and for me not shocking. It isn’t from over-eating in any way shape or form, it is from water retention and the steroids. Knowing that makes it easy for me to get back on the Medifast Program and forge ahead with my weight loss.

If you haven’t read my earlier posts or if I had not mentioned it, it is this cycle of illness and medication that led me to Medifast in the first place. I have a complicated medical history concerning my weight, acid reflux, asthma and related issues. I have had a couple of close calls and hospital stays in the last 5 years and that alone is what is driving me to Medifast and weight loss. I worry about my weight, my health and my family because of my weight and it is enough to ensure I get back on the Medifast Program and stay with it.

Weight loss is not a journey with an end for me, it is a struggle and an eventual triumph over poor lifestyle choices and management of my own habits. It will not end at a goal weight it will be with me for life. Just like a drug addict is always a drug addict, a fat person is always a fat person in my mind, always in danger of becoming that fat person again no matter how much weight they might lose. So I am dedicated to overcoming the near future struggles, getting the weight off and take each day as it comes. I am full of inspiration, hope and motivation to clear up my asthma, get back on my bike and continue on the Medifast Program!

It’s good to be back!

The summer is quickly closing in and if you live in Arizona, it’s already here. With the warm weather come barbecues, food and a virtual minefield for the health conscious person, especially those of us trying to maintain a low-carb lifestyle. The American picnic table is carb laden to say the least. Macarroni salad, potato salad, potato chips, burgers, hot dogs, fresh melons and fried chicken. It is our heritage in this country and probably why we are all fat.

I found myself struggling through the weekend and last couple of days after a weekend get together that ended with many, many leftovers that don’t fit the Medifast plan or healthy living in general. Sure, the bags of chips say “Zero Trans-fats” but who cares? It still contains a ton of grease, empty calories and salt! Between summer coming and a very, very stressful work environment, I’m finding my weight loss a daily struggle again after I was able to coast worry free for so long. This just re-enforces for me the fact I’m an emotional eater and I’m heavily influenced by my environment.

It isn’t enough to recognize it, but it certainly is a good start.

Well, I have started back up on Medifast but it I am off to a slow restart weight loss wise as I weigh-in with zero change this week. I can feel my clothes are loose and now more than ever I need a new belt to hold my pants on, but the scale says I’m the same. I guess it just goes to show that the scale isn’t everything.

I have been dying to get back on my mountain bike and get riding again, but my Asthma Doctor said I need to wait until the weather gets warmer due to the bad allergy season here in the valley. I can feel that my breathing is a little suppressed and I’m generally wheezy, but I am still chomping at the bit to get back on my bike.

I was thinking about things that I am looking forward to once I have ceased to be fat and I can add swimming to the list. Living in Arizona, many summer days are spent pool side and for me those days are embarrassing as I am not attractive swimming with my shirt off. I look forward to a day when I feel comfortable in the pool and pool side, when I don’t get out of the pool and scramble for a towel.

It has been a rough morning here, hope all is well with everyone else this Monday morning!

I haven’t been around as I was recently in a car accident. It wasn’t a horrific accident by any means but I am sore never-the-less. I have to admit that during the hectic events of the last week or so I haven’t been on the Medifast Program. I fell off the wagon so to speak under the stress of some life events and found myself eating for emotional reasons. I didn’t go insane and start binging what-so-ever, I just failed to follow the program.

The good news is, I find myself eating a lot less and a lot smaller portions these days, and during me week off of Medifast I didn’t gain back a single pound!

Rather than fool myself into thinking I’m okay off the program, I have started right back up to ensure I can get down to my goal weight. I think it was good to have a short break for a couple of reasons, if for no other reason then to learn a quick life lesson. I was able to quickly identify my emotional eating and keep it under control and I know that I am not punishing myself for stumbles along the way, but rather taking each day as it comes.

I think if this had happened on any other plan or before I started Medifast I would have binge eaten my way back up to 350lbs! Anyway, I will be back and posting regularly and hope to hear from you all in the future!

Well I’m down 5 more pounds bringing my total to 35lbs. lost to date! I’m pretty excited to be slimming down for the first time in years. I apologize for not posting more often as of late, but between long hours at work and remodeling two bathrooms at my house I’ve been pretty swamped. I managed to finish up most of the remodeling this weekend, so I should be around a lot more.

I have not managed to get back on my bike like I wanted to due to some lingering asthma issues, but I am getting plenty of exercise around the house these days. The Arizona spring has been a warm one and I’m getting outside for some lawn work in addition to my other projects. I can feel that I’m getting back some of my pre-obese mobility and it hurts less to squat, bend and generally stretch to do things. It is a good feeling indeed to feel my age for a change instead of like a 90 year old man! It is crazy how you don’t notice the loss of mobility and personal comfort as you gain weight, but you sure notice it when you get it back.

Hope everyone is having an awesome Monday!

Hard to believe but it is time once again for me to see my pulmonologist and get an asthma check up. I have been doing really well since starting Medifast health-wise and my doctor had been hounding me to get my weight down and keep it down. In fact, she was the real push behind me getting on the program. At my last visit she looked over my records for the last two years and noticed I had been up and down weight as much as 87 pounds in difference and was quite alarmed. I’m happy to be going back to see her having lost more than 30 pounds!

The visit comes at a pretty good time as my sleeplessness has been less and less of a problem as the weight has come off. The sleep study had recommended I get on a CPAP some thirty pounds ago, but having tried one out in the clinic for a night, I decided I would sleep more restfully without it (man was it uncomfortable). Anyway, I can say without a doubt that being on the Medifast Program and losing those first 30+ pounds has already had a huge impact on my health. I’m excited to get a check up and see just how well I am doing.

Have a good day!

Normally I would be posting my weekly weigh-in today but alas, my scale has left this world never to return. I was on vacation all of last week, which is the main reason for my lack of posting. I spent most of that time working on remodeling both of the bathrooms in our house. During the removal of the vanity in our master bath, my scale got kicked and it bumped into the toilet. It was one of those cool looking, modern glass scales and as soon as the edge slammed into that toilet it exploded into a thousand tiny pieces. I really liked that scale too.

I’m not sure about my loss, but I feel thinner and above all I’m feeling better about myself and my relationship with food in general. I am looking forward to getting a new scale and seeing where my weight is. As for the biking I started last week, I’m afraid that was put on hold for home improvement as well, but trust me when I say I got more than enough exercise during last week.

Well, I’m off to work, hope everyone is having a great day and has a great week!

I’m down another pound putting my weight at 319 and total loss so far on the Medifast Program at 31 pounds. I’m not discouraged by the single pound loss because I finally got back in the saddle so to speak and started riding my mountain bike again last night. In the past when I’ve tried to lose weight, the addition of exercise normally stunted my progress for a week or two during which time I assume my body is trying to figure things out and puts the brakes on the weight loss. So, a pound is a pound and it is gone!

I have to be honest, getting back on my bike was BRUTAL! I rode a fast paced four miles and was gasping for breath at the end. I felt a bit of an asthma problem come on but I have some preventative medicine that will hopefully stop that from happening. I forgot to take it this weekend and thus I was suffering a bit. Much like changing the way I eat, changing my level of activity will no doubt be difficult at first, but I know that once I get a week or two under my belt, I will find the joy in riding I once had.

This week I’m on vacation and home with the kids for spring break. I’m going to use this time to do some home improvement projects around the house and yard and hopefully this extra physical activity will add to my weight loss. I am also doing it to keep overly busy and avoid sniping food from the kitchen all day long. I think a father-daughter fishing trip may be in order to get me out of the house!