Pound Plunge

Well its after the first of the year and time to hop back on the wagon. As many of my loyal blog followers will attest I have not been on here in quite some time (nearly a month). For anyone who knows me, there is one sure way to get my competitive juices flowing: get me to bet money on something. So here is the new bet. Myself and 3 buddies have agreed to a weight loss bet coinciding with the annual Heartland Pound Plunge. The program is 12 weeks, requiring weekly weigh-ins, and the winner is decided based on total body percentage lost. The Pound Plunge began with inital weigh-ins at East Hills Mall on Tuesday, January 10th. That day the we weighed in at: Courtney 258.6, Ron 248.4, Me 214.0, & John 213.4. Our side wager is $50 per person winner takes all. We will also have a celebratory steak dinner at Frederick Inn, with 3rd & 4th place picking up the tab. Therefore each position matters, if you dont get first you still want 2nd!

Goals & Objectives
I will be attempting to lose 29 lbs during these 12 weeks, an average of a little under 2.5 lbs per week. I understand that that is a lofty goal, but I dont feel a goal is worth striving for unless it is going to be tough.

I am planning to exercise 3-4 times per week, for the most part on a day on, day off, day on, day off rotation. I may periodically do two days in a row depending on how i feel. Im hoping this interval pattern will keep me fresh both physically and mentally. The hardest part for me when I am exercising is getting mentally exhausted with it; just bored and not caring.

Week 1, Jan 10th-16th
Day one consisted of a granola bar & coffee for breakfast, Subway footlong ham for lunch, & Pork chops with fried potatoes for dinner.
Day two was coffee & granola bar breakfast, Subway footlong ham for lunch again, & spaghetti & meatballs (light sauce) for dinner.
Day three was coffee & granola bar breakfast, Select Harvest Italian Style soup for lunch, & leftover spaghetti & meatballs for dinner.
Day for was a bowl of Honey nut Cheerios for breakfast, lunch was Tilapia & shrimp on a bed of rice with steamed broccoli, & dinner was a baked chicken breast with rice. I had a poker game to attend which sucked me into eating a plate of nachos. I also went to iHop after the game and ate two pancakes, bacon, & eggs with hashbrowns. Definitely not a great late night choice, but it has become a tradition after a big poker game. I dont think you can cut everything out of your life and never splurge.
Day five was a bowl of Honey Bunches of Oats for breakfast, and a Lean Pocket with chips and salsa for dinner. I had slept in so breakfast was late and dinner was early which cut out lunch.

*Click for Nutritional Information

Day six was coffee & granola bar breakfast, Subway lunch, & Chicken fajitas for dinner.
Day seven was coffee & granola for breakfast, a Mr Goodcents chicken sub for lunch, & pork chops with diced baked potatoes for dinner.

Exercise- I ran 3 miles on the treadmill day 1, 3 miles day 3, 3.5 miles day 5, & 3.5 miles day 7.

Week 2 January 17th-23rd
I weighed in at Heartland early morning Wednesday, January 17th. Much to my surprise I weighed in at 205.4 lbs, down 8.6 lbs. In fairness we did eat a huge lunch before our initial weigh in, and this weigh in was after no food for 12 hours and first thing in the morning. Nonetheless, it was a pretty good week. Tallies after week one were Jason -8.6, Ron -8.4, John -7.6, & Courtney -5.6.

Day one was coffee & granola bar breakfast, Select Harvest SW style potato soup lunch, & baked chicken breast with noodles for dinner.
Day two was Cheerios for breakfast, animal crackers for lunch, and a baked chicken breast with some barbecue pork and a baked potato for dinner.
Day three was a bowl of Honey Bunches of Oats for breakfast, Select Harvest Chicken Noodle soup for lunch, & fried ham with potatoes and gravy for dinner.
Day four was Cheerios for breakfast, Chipotle fajita burrito bowl (no tortilla) for lunch, & a Chicken with veggies Lean Cuisine for dinner.
Day five was Cheerios for breakfast & pork steak with potatoes for dinner.
Day six was frosted Mini Wheats for breakfast, chips & salsa for lunch, and Hamburger Helper Cheeseburger Macaroni for dinner.
Day seven was coffee & granola breakfast, a footlong Subway club for lunch, & chicken, potatoes, & asparagus for dinner. I also shared a banana with Jaxon.

Exercise- I ran 4.0 miles day 2, I played basketball for 2 hours day 4, I played racquetball & basketball for 2.5 hours days 6, and ran 3.5 miles at a quicker pace day 7.

I did end up weighing Tuesday night this week. I weighed in at 204.0 which is only 1.4 lbs for this week but exactly 10.0 lbs in two weeks. After two weeks the tallies are John -10.0 lbs, Jason -10.0 lbs, Ron -8.4, & Courtney -7.6. Between the 4 of us in just two short weeks we are down

Pounds!

Catching up

Day 1
And here we are in the last week of my weight loss bet! After weighing in this morning, sans breakfast, I found myself 3.2 lbs ahead of my competitor. I honestly feel that if I have a decent week that I cant lose. Dont take that wrong that I wont be putting in maximum effort though. At the beginning of our wager, on the scale at Heartland fully clothed I weighed 224.2 lbs. This morning I weighed in at 203.8, a 20.4 lb loss. John weighed in at down 17.2 lbs. Thats a pretty healthy, respectable amount for both of us through 11 weeks. Sure its possible to lose more, but I want to lose the weight the healthy way and keep it off long term.
Lunch today was chinese food, obviously. After work I ran 4.0 miles, but did it at a little quicker pace then usual. I knocked it out in 35 minutes. For dinner my lovely wife cooked homemade chicken & noodles with mashed potatoes.

Day 2

*Click the picture for more information*

I ended up eating breakfast fairly late as I was busy this morning. About 10am I had a cup of coffee and a granola bar. Because breakfast was so late I wasnt really hungry at lunch time. About 1:30 I ate an orange for lunch. After work I ran 6.0 miles. I actually only intended to run 2.0 miles very quickly, but the inner beast in me took over and I just kept running, kind of like Forrest Gump. Im not sure how this will affect the rest of my weekly schedule. I have put in 5,4,then 6 miles the past 3 days. I really want to push hard through the end of this week, but we will see how i hold up. Dinner was leftovers from the night before.

Day 3
Standard day for me. I had a cup of coffee and a granola bar for breakfast. For lunch I had a Subway sandwich. This time I had the chicken,bacon, ranch as it looked so good in the picture. I had a small sprinkle of shredded cheese. This obviously wasnt the most healthy sandwich, but it was probably still better then a lot of the other alternatives.

And for some reason I stopped blogging right here. I have not entered a blog post in nearly a month. I have still kept track of what I have been eating and the minimal exercise I have been putting in. I will post all of my food/exercise information going forward but the next month worth of information will probably be pretty boring:

Friday- I ran 5 miles after work. I then ate a chipotle burrito that I stopped and got on the way home. I definitely pushed myself too hard while running today (the 4th day in a row exercising). Within 30 minutes of exercising, showering, & eating I had a severe migraine. I ended up throwing up. I went to bed about 8:00pm feeling very bad.
Saturday- breakfast was cinnamon sugar toast. In the afternoon we had Jaxons first b-day party. I ate a wide array of things including vegetables, chips & dip, little smokies, a small slice of cake with homemade ice cream, etc. After the party i drove back up to Grant City to go deer hunting again. Upon arrival I was treated to pizza.
Sunday- Breakfast was a 1/2 order of B&G & small western omelet with coffee.Lunch was leftover pizza, dinner was chili.
Monday- I had the identical breakfast as Sunday. On the way home from hunting I had one slice of pizza and a small can of Pringles.
Tuesday- I did not eat any breakfast. Lunch was Campbells select harvest chicken with rice soup. For dinner I had Buffalo Wild Wings, 12 boneless with potatoe wedges.
Wednesday- This morning was the final weigh in for my weight loss bet. I got up early and ran 5 miles. I also did not eat breakfast. I ended up weighing 201.6, a loss of nearly 23 lbs. My competitor apparently threw in the towel as he came in a few pounds heavier then the week before. He also showed up to the final weigh-in in jeans, as opposed to gym shorts and a t shirt which was our usual weigh in attire. I won the bet by 6+ lbs. We celebrated the end of our bet by eating lunch at Ryan’s buffet. For dinner the wife and I got 54th street to go.
Thursday- breakfast was cinnamon sugar toast. Lunch was your traditional thanksgiving meal, i.e. turkey, mashed potatoes & gravy, stuffing, etc. For dinner I ate leftover little smokies.
Friday- breakfat was a bowl of oatmeal, lunch was chinese food at the mall, & dinner was leftover Bww & 54th street. I also had some leftover pumpkin pie triffle.
Saturday- Breakfast was scrambled eggs, for lunch I made some delicious venison nachos, & for dinner we ate KFC.
Sunday- For breakfast we went to my brother in laws house and ate some awesome breakfast burritos. For lunch we had leftover KFC. For dinner I had some chips & dip.
Monday- granola bar & coffee for breakfast, subway club footlong for lunch, twin dragon takeout chinese for dinner.
Tuesday- breakfast was a Delish blueberry scone, lunch was some not so good sushi from Hy-vee, dinner was a twice baked potatoe with some seasoned boneless, skinless chicken breast chunks.
Wednesday- I ate breakfast at Dennys. I had a delicious sandwich with pretty much any breakfast type food you can think of. 6″ subway club, no cheese for lunch. For dinner we stopped at McDonalds on the way home and I ate my first ever McRib & fries. I was mildly impressed with the McRib.
Thursday- granola bar & coffee breakfast, gene o’s pizza sandwich for lunch, then I jogged 2 miles after work. Dinner was a Healthy choice fish microwave dinner.
Friday- blueberry scone & cofee breakfast, chicken strips & fries for lunch. I apparently didnt record what I had for dinner?
Saturday- I had some beef jerkey and an Amp energy drink on the way to Grant City. For lunch I had a baked potatoe with @ElaineMitchell. For dinner I ate a chicken sandwich & fries.
Sunday- I woke Sunday morning about 11:00am. I decided to order a Pizza Hut pizza for lunch. I ate two slices and enjoyed every bite. About 3:00 I started feeling sick. I began to vomit uncontrollably. I dont think I have ever done that so much, for so long. It was a completely miserable evening.
Monday- My wife & I both stayed home sick from work. For lunch I had some chicken noodle soup. For dinner I had some rotisserie chicken & mashed potatoes.
Tuesday- no breakfast, chinese food for lunch, leftover chicken for dinner.
Wednesday-granola bar & coffee breakfast. Chicken enchilado with beans & rice for lunch. I did run 4 miles after work. My wife made some pork chops & fried potatoes for dinner.
Thursday-Granola bar breakfast, chinese food for lunch. I made some sausage Zatarains rice for dinner.
Friday- granola bar, Taco Johns chicken & potatoes for lunch, steak & baked potato for dinner.
Saturday- For breakfast I had two Eggo waffles. For lunch we stopped at QT & I had 2 buffalo chicken rollers. For dinner we ate at the Downing family Xmas party. I had some delicious ham, green bean casserole, corn casserole, etc. I also had a piece of pumpkin pie and 2 beers.
Sunday- instant oatmeal breakfast, Cheddars chicken strips & fries lunch (ate half, took the rest home).
Monday- granola bar & coffee breakfast, twin dragon chinese for lunch. I ran 5 miles after work. For dinner we had meatloaf with mashed potatoes & gravy.
Tuesday- I had a granola bar & coffee for breakfast. For lunch I had some more chinese food.

Summary
I lost all of my motivation after the end of the weight loss bet. While I was still cognizant of my weight and what I was eating, I had no motivation to continue. If you wasted your time and read what I did the last month you would find that I often ate poorly and exercised very little. I intend to change both of those things going forward. I ran 5.0 miles last night and I intend to return to my 20+ miles, 4+ hours of weekly exercise which I was doing a mere few weeks ago. I weighed yesterday and found that I had gained back a little over 4 lbs. That is extremely disheartening. I did not put in all of this hard work to simply gain the weight back.

Plan: I will be joining the Heartland Health pound plunge in January. In the meantime I intend to focus everything within me towards staying fit and eating healthier. Although it is categorically impossible to always eat the right things, there is no reason for my laziness and lack of exercise of the recent weeks. I intend to change that. I am a person who needs motivational tools, the dangling carrot. Im hopeful that the pound plunge with weekly weigh ins (in public no less) will keep me on the right track. I am about 4 weeks away from that beginning so in the meantime I guess I will be operating off of sheer willpower. Keeep me honest. IF you dont see this blog updated for a few weeks, or if you dont like what you are seeing then let me know.

Week 11

Day 1
I had no breakfast this morning. After weighing in, John and I went and ate Subway. I had the spicy Italian footlong. For dinner I had chicken strips, waffle fries, and sweet tea from Chik-Fil-A.

Day 2
Breakfast was a granola bar and a cup of coffee. For lunch I had a bowl of Campbell’s Select Harvest chicken noodle soup. After work I ran 5.0 miles. For dinner I had a Healthy Requests microwave meal, Chicken Pesto Alfredo.

Day 3
I did not eat any breakfast. For lunch I had some Honey Barbecue chicken chunks and potatoe wedges from Wal-Mart. For dinner I ate in Allendale at the Mason’s fish fry. I had about 5 pieces of fried fish, some french fries, and toast.

Day 4
Today was the opening day of deer season. For breakfast I had a full order of biscuits & gravy, hashbrowns, & coffee at the Allendale cafe. I didnt really eat a solid lunch, though I did snack on deer jerky throughout the day. I also drank a Mt Dew. For dinner I had some smoked deer ribs, augratin potatoes, and some gumbo with rice. Dinner was at my wifes cousin’s house. Every year around deer season he always provides a feast, free of charge. It was very good again this year, as usual. I did also drink 2 Bud Lights.

HEALTHY EATING AND DIET CENTER
Day 5
Breakfast was a 1/2 order of Biscuits & gravy, hasbrowns, a small omelete, and coffee. For lunch we had Dingers signature jambalaya. As usual I also snacked on deer jerky and peanut clusters that afternoon. I ended up getting home late from deer hunting so i didnt have dinner. I did snack on some potatoe chips and salsa that evening though.

Day 6
I did not have any breakfast today. For lunch I had a subway sandwich, footlong honey ham. For dinner we grabbed some chinese food from Panda Express.

Day 7
Breakfast was a granola bar and a cup of coffee. For lunch I had a salad and fruit from Hy-vee. After work I ran 5.0 miles on the treadmill. For dinner we ate spaghetti & meatballs.

Summary:
All in all probably not the best week. I only got a few workouts in. I did more walking on the weekend then I would normally do, so hopefully that off set some of the lack of exercise. My food choices were obviously poor all weekend. I hoping to have a good week this week as I have another weekend of birthday parties and deer hunting coming up.

Week 10

http://www.howtoloseweighthealthy.com/
Day 1
No Wednesday morning breakfast. I went and weighed by myself this week as John was busy. I lost 1.0 pounds. Hopefully that at least kept me on pace with John in our bet. We have three weeks to go and I plan on finishing strong!After weighing in I went to Hy-vee and ate sushi and two chicken skewers. After work I ran 5.0 miles on the treadmill. Dinner was baked chicken breast with white rice.

Day 2
Breakfast was a granola bar and a cup of coffee. Lunch was Campbells Healthy Request chicken noodle soup. For dinner I ate spaghetti with one piece of toast.

Day 3

*click for nutritional information*

Breakfast was a granola bar and a cup of coffee. Lunch was Campbells Healthy Request Light Maryland Style crab soup. This was actually a lot better then i anticipated it would be. It is also one of the healthier soups in this line, so I think I may be eating it more often. After work i ran 4.0 miles. For dinner we went out and ate at Sakura which is a japanese steakhouse. I believe this is probably fairly healthy place to dine out as all of the food is cooked directly in front of you. There is no deep frying or grease involved. We really enjoy eating there as there is a little entertainment included with dinner.

Day 4
For a late breakfast I had a bowl of frosted mini wheats. For dinner I ate an Original recipe chicken breast from KFC along with mashed potatoes and gravy.

*Click for nutritional information*

Day 5
For breakfast i cooked my wife and mother-in-law pancakes and bacon. For lunch I had some salt & vinegar chips with salsa. For dinner I had take out chinese food for a local restaurant in Savannah.

Day 6
I ended up working overnight and then sleeping until afternoon today. I surprisingly wasnt hungry at all most of the day. I ran 6.0 miles on the treadmill late in the afternoon. For dinner my wife made some delicious potatoe soup. I did include some shredded cheese and bacon so it probably wasnt the most healthy meal, but it was literally all i ate all day.

Day 7
I again worked overnght and slept in. I got out of bed about 10:00am. I ate a Subway footlong ham sandwich for lunch, with no cheese and lowfat honey mustard. This afternoon I jumped on the treadmill intending to do a minimum of 5 miles. I ended up doing 8.0. I actually feel a lot better than I have in the past after running 8 miles. For dinner I made a ham steak with fried potatoes.

Summary
I picked up the pace quite a bit with the exercise this week. Last week I only logged 8 miles total and this week i put in 23.0 miles. I did have a few not so good meals, but all in all I think I had a pretty good week. I have 2 full weeks left in my weight loss wager (which will complete 12 week since i started the weight loss initiative).

WEIGHT LOSS CALCULATOR

Week 9

Day 1
Again as usual, I did not eat breakfast on Wednesday. At the weekly weigh-in my weight was stagnant, but John somehow lost 4+ lbs. I am still ahead 1.2 lbs on the bet. For lunch we ate at Subway. For dinner I had two pieces of pizza and 6 chicken wings.

Day 2
Breakfast was a granola bar, lunch was Subway again. For dinner we had a PF Changs pre-made Sweet & Sour Chicken with pineapple & noodles dinner.

*Click image for nutritional facts*

Day 3
Breakfast was a bowl of frosted mini wheats. For lunch we ate at Johnny Carino’s and I had the skillitini which is essentially spaghetti topped with chicken, sausage, onions & peppers. After we got home I ran 2.5 miles. Dinner was leftovers from lunch.

Day 4
For breakfast I had two pieces of toast with cinnamon/sugar. For lunch we went to my wife’s grandparents. We had fried chicken, mashed potatoes and gravy and corn. I also had a dinner roll. It was very good. For dinner I had one bowl of potatoe soup and one bowl of chilli.

Day 5

*Click for nutritional information*

For breakfast I had a bowl of Grape Nuts. I skipped lunch. For dinner I had more leftovers from Johnny Carinos (my wifes portion of chicken & bowtie noodles) as well as some leftover pork loin.

Day 6
For breakfast I had an orange and a cup of coffee. For lunch I had chinese food. For dinner I had a bowl of plain white rice.

Day 7
For breakfast I had a granola bar and a cup of coffee. For lunch I had a bowl of Campbells Healthy Request chicken noodle soup. After work I ran 5.5 miles. For Dinner I ate a Healthy Choice lowfat microwave meal, Baked crusted Salmon with penne noodles and sauce. I believe there was also some green beans. It was actually a lot better then I anticipated it would be.

Summary
I only ended up logging 8 miles this week which is far and away the worst week since I have started. I essentially made up a lot of excuses for not exercising this week. I was fairly busy, and one day I didnt feel really well. Nonetheless, im planning on really picking up the pace this next week. I also intend to do a better job of eating a little more healthy and updating this blog more regularly!

Week 8

Day 1
As usual for Wednesdays, I started off the morning by not eating or drinking anything prior to the weekly weigh-in. According to our weigh-in location I was down 2.1 lbs this week, with my adversary breaking even for the 3rd week in a row. I now hold a 5.8 lb advantage with 5 full weeks remaining.
I off course (as has become customary) treated myself to some chinese food as a way of rewarding another good effort. Dinner was leftover enchiladas from the night before.

Day 2
Breakfast was a granola bar and a cup of coffee. Lunch was a bowl of Campbells Chunky soup, Italian Wedding Style. After work I ran 5.0 miles on the treadmill. Dinner was spaghetti & meatballs with toast.

Day 3
Breakfast was a blueberry scone from the local bakery (Delish Bakery, which is in fact delish!) and a cup of coffee. Lunch was a bowl of Campbells Chunky soup, Herb Grained Rice & Chicken. After work I ran 8.0 miles on the treadmill! That was the farthest individual run that I have ever completed. I did 10 miles one day a few weeks back, and 8 miles another day but those were both comprised of split workouts. This time the 8.0 miles was completed in one full exercise. I had moments of exhaustion during the exercise and moments of adrenaline and a rush of euphoria that helped me complete the exercise. As I usually do after a hard exercise, I immediately regretted my decision. I finished off the leftover enchiladas in the fridge and laid on the couch the rest of the night. I think I was in bed, asleep before 9:00!

5 tips to maximize your workouts

Day 4
Today I went with a buddy to KC & Sedalia to buy a truck. On the way down I had a granola bar & a cup of coffee. For lunch we ate at Applebees. I chose an item off of the 550 calorie menu. I went with the steak and shrimp combo with a side of mixed veggies. The food was very good, but the portion was obviously pretty small. I did also eat 3-4 boneless honey barbecue chicken wings as an appetizer. For dinner I had some baked tequila lime chicken wings with one Blue Moon Pumpkin Spice beer that I had been saving.

Day 5
Yet another Chiefs win. I am starting to get used to this!
Breakfast was 2 Eggo waffles and a glass of milk. Dinner was some chinese food from the local Savannah hole in the wall chinese restaurant. I usually get carry-out when I go there because the place doesnt have a very hospitible environment.

D Bowe put on another show in Oakland!

Day 6
Breakfast was a granola bar & a cup of coffee. Lunch was a california sushi roll and one chicken skewer from Hy-vee. After work I ran 5.0 miles on the treadmill. 5 miles is starting to feel like a light workout and I can complete it fairly easily. Im not sure if thats a good or bad thing. I know its a sign that I am rounding into shape, but I also dont like to have to spend over an hour exercising to achieve the desired affect. I burn around 700 calories in a 5.0 mile run, covering approximately 50 minutes. I know I could probably complete the run faster at this point, but I think the time of the run is bout what Im looking for. Maybe I will try to push and do a 5.5 or 6.0 mile run but still cover it in 50 mins. Dinner was a bowl of baked apple oatmal.

Day 7
Standard, almost every day granola bar & coffee breakfast. Lunch was a bowl of Campbells Chunky Sirloin burger with vegetables soup. After work I ran 5.0 miles again. Dinner was a grilled pork loin with noodles.

Exercise & Eating

Week 7

Day 1
I skipped breakfast this morning which is pretty typical for a weigh-in Wednesday. Lunch was the Twin Dragon chinese buffet. I ran 5.0 miles after work on the treadmill. Dinner was a leftover baked chicken breast with a bowl of rice.

Day 2
Breakfast was the standard granola bar and coffee. For lunch I had another delicious $5 Subway footlong. This time it was the steak and cheese, probably not nearly as healthy as a club but still not horrible. Dinner was another “opportunity” to dine out. We ate at 54th street. I ended up ordering a grilled chicken breast topped with mushrooms & onions, a side of steamed vegetables and a side of mashed potatoes. I hardly ate any of the mashed potatoes.

Day 3
Standard breakfast. Lunch was a bowl of chicken noodle soup. After work I logged a 7.0 mile treadmill exercise. I only intended to do 5 miles but I was feeling good towards the end of it so I decided to push myself to finish out the week. For dinner I baked some country style ribs and ate some leftover plain white rice.

Day 4
I had my standard week day breakfast of a granola bar & a cup of coffee. We went up to Grant City for a family reunion. I had a big plate of food for lunch consisting of a piece of fried chicken, mashed potatoes & gravy, corn,some sort of corn/pepper salad, some tortilla chips & dip, turkey, & a roll. I also ate a few smoked stuffed banana peppers. It was a delicious lunch, obviously not very healthy.
After lunch I went out with a buddy and installed some windows in our deer hunting hut. I drank 2 beers that afternoon. On the way home for dinner I ate 5 mini tacos (as in tiny bite size tacos). Although lunch wasnt healthy, I hardly ate much for dinner at all so I dont think the day was horrible.

Day 5
No breakfast today. For lunch I had a fajita burrito bowl from Chipotle (menu). I did not have a tortilla (which is suprisingly really bad for you) but I did have cheese and sour cream. I also shared a Root Beer with Darcie which violated my no pop rule. Sunday afternoon I push mowed and trimmed my yard and the neighbors yard. I counted that as my workout as it took me about 1 1/2 hrs. Dinner was a bowl of plain white rice with 6 baked chicken wings.

Day 6
Standard granola bar and coffee breakfast. For lunch I went to Fazoli’s and had a small side salad with a small portion of spaghetti with meatballs. I also had 2 breadsticks. Dinner was homemade enchilladas and green chilli.

Day 7
I decided to take a mental health day from work today. I slept in, then had a bowl of Frosted Mini Wheats around 10:00am. After lounging around the house for a bit I decided to exercise. I got a nice 4.0 mile run in and felt pretty good. I sat around for a little while, pretty bored, and decided to run a little bit more. I was thinking another mile or two, but I ended up doing 4.0 more bringing my daily exercise total to 8.0 and my weekly total to 20 miles ran in just 3 days. For dinner I baked some boneless skinless chicken breasts and added some mashed potatoes and gravy.

Summary
I feel like I definitely had a rollercoaster of a week. I ate bad some days, but other days i hardly ate at all. I didnt work out nearly as many days as I have been, but when I did work out I pushed myself pretty hard. According to my home scale I lost approximately 1.2 lbs for the week.

Week 6

Day 1
Breakfast was a granola bar and a cup of coffee. Lunch was a bowl of Campbell’s chunky chicken noodle soup with crackers. After work I went to the track again with my buddy. Again today we put in 3.0 miles on the track. Dinner was steak with mashed potatoes, no gravy & corn. I would have to go back and check, but this might be the first red meat I have had since I started this weight loss plan.

Day 2
Wow, I am sore today. Running on the track is definitely 100x different then running on the treadmill. The past two days I have done 3 miles each day outside. Today my calves and achilles are extremely sore. Im sure like everything else this will take a little getting used to.
Breakfast was two Pop-tarts and a cup of coffee. Lunch was chinese food. Dinner was 6 chicken wings and a salad (no cheese, light fat free ranch).

Top 10 Guilty Restuarant Pleasures
Day 3
Breakfast was a blueberry scone with coffee. Lunch was a small salad with water. After work I ran 5.0 miles on the treadmill. I must admit that i enjoyed the treadmill much more then running outside. I will continue to try to keep up a mixture of both, especially as long as the weather remains nice.

After my workout and shower I decided to go to Orsheln’s to get some gloves that I will need over the weekend. I left the house, wasnt gone more then 10 minutes. When i opened up my garage, this is what greeted me:
Those plastic tubs used to be stacked almost to the ceiling, two columns high. Im not sure why after 3 years they decided to tumbled over, but they did. I spent the better part of an hour cleaning that mess up and throwing a lot of stuff away. Needless to say, I obviously cut my finger about half way off on some glass.
Dinner was two pieces of cinnamon sugar toast.

Day 4
I started off the day with 2 more pieces of cinnamon sugar toast. I had forgotten how good that combination was! The next 10 hours of my day after breakfast consisted of helping one of my buddies tear down his Grandma’s house. It was kind of fun tearing stuff up, but also a pretty good workout. Im sure on an hourly rate I didnt burn as many calories as doing cardio, but over the 10 hour period Im sure I burned more calories then a normal treadmill session.

Since I had such a good day, I decided to completely ruin it by eating pizza and drinking beer that night. I felt guilty while I was doing it, but damn it tasted good! I refrained from eating any of the available snacks or cookies.

Day 5
Today was recovery day. The majority of the day I spent laying around on the couch watching football. Darcie & I did eat Panda Express for lunch. Dinner was a low fat Healthy Choice microwave meal. The healthy microwave meals have come a long way in quality over the past few years, but they obviously will always lack in quantity. Nonetheless, not really a win or lose day (except for the Chiefs, THEY WON!).

Day 6 Another day, another work week. Breakfast was the standard coffee & granola bar. Lunch was a Subway Club sandwich. Subway has again come out with $5 for any regular footlong in October. I love when they do that because you arent limited to only a few sandwiches for $5. Dinner was mashed potatoes and corn.

Day 7
Another breakfast of granola bar and coffee. Lunch was a bowl of Campbell Select Harvest soup (sausage & rice). I did 5 miles on the treadmill after work. Dinner was baked chicken breast with a side of Lipton noodles.

Summary
All in all, my treadmill cardio work was way down this week. However, running on the track and working physically on Saturday I feel make up the difference. According to my rudimentary scale at home, I lost approximately 1.6 lbs this week. I am down about 14 lbs total in 6 weeks. I havent went back and looked at the exact number, so that is a ball park number in my head!

Week 5

Well its becoming apparent to me pretty quickly that I have hit a plateau. Losing weight is going to be a little harder from the point forward. Im ok with putting in mass amounts of exercise, but I still have to do a better job of watching what I eat.

Day 1
Because its weigh in day, I did not eat any breakfast. I met John for our regular weigh-in. According to their scales, I was down right at 1.0 lb and John was down 2.6 lbs. That puts John 1.6 lbs ahead in our competition.
I end up going to Hy-vee and eating some sushi for lunch. I also had one chicken skewer and water. When got home from work I ran 5.0 miles on the treadmill. Dinner was leftover grilled chicken, with one biscuit and some gravy.

Day 2
Breakfast was one Pop-Tart pastry and a cup of coffee. Lunch was my crutch food, chinese buffet. No matter how hard I try, I just cant stay away! I want to, but on days when i know im not working out, I just cant help myself. No workout after work. Dinner was the Oriental Chicken Salad from Applebees. Again I was suprised by the large selection of seemingly healthy food I found on a restaurant menu. I doubt some of things that they show are truly as healthy as they claim though. Eating Healthy @ Applebees

Day 3
Breakfast was a granola bar and a cup of coffee. Lunch was a Subway footlong club sandwich. For dinner I ate a bowl of chilli. I also snacked on some cheese and some chips & salsa. For dessert I shared a bowl of apple crisp and vanilla ice cream with Darcie. I had not planned on going to a family gathering, but i ended up working late which caused me to not have transportation to get home. I therefore ended up going to a family gathering and not workng out. Sometimes plans go that way, so I have to adjust.

Day 4
Home alone all day today, I decide to put in some serious miles. I knew that 6-7 miles in one stretch was about my maximum so i formulated a plan to get more then that completed. I decided that I would attempt to run 10 miles, in 2 mile increments. I got up fairly early in the morning and started into it. I completed one session, and took a short break. I completed session #2 and took another short break. I did session #3 putting me at 6.0 miles for the day. I was fairly tired, and hungry at this point. I decided to get something to eat and pick this up later. I showered and changed into some dry clothes. I ate a large bowl of Honey Nut Cheerios. I sat down on the couch around 11:00am and ended up falling back asleep. I awoke around 1:00pm. I decided i better finish what i had started that morning. I got on the treadmill, blew past the 2 mile mark, and finished out the complete 4.0 miles. For the day I had completed 10 miles total. 2 showers and 3 sets of clothes later I was feeling pretty good about my day.
Saturday night I ended up going to play some cards. I ate the remainder of some leftover chicken we had which really only consisted of two full wings and also some baked fries before going to the game. After the game I went to iHop with some buddies and ate a roast beef sandwhich and some french fries. Im sure this completely negated the 10 miles I had ran earlier, but dang it was good! I did not drink any beer again this weekend, which is a fairly common thing for me.

Day 5
Another Sunday, another Chiefs game. This time I attended it though. My wife and Jaxon also went to the game. It turned out being a beautiful day, and not just because the Chiefs won! On the way to the game I had a cup of coffee and a granola bar. At the game I shared a basket of french fries and chicken strips with Darcie. We also shared a Sprite, which was on of the first pops I have had in awhile. Sunday evening I ate some takeout chinese food for a local place in Savannah. Again probably not the best day with greasy food and no exercise.

Day 6
Granola bar & coffee breakfast, Subway lunch, spaghetti dinner. I also ran 7.0 miles on the treadmill after work. Not much else to today.

Day 7
Granola bar & coffee breakfast. I ended up meeting John a day early to weigh in as I wont be able to tomorrow. This week I was down just under 1.0lb, at .6 lbs. John gained 3.0lbs but he blamed it on the jeans he was wearing and a large metal belt he had on. Nonetheless, I am currently 1.9lbs ahead on the bet!
We went to Hy-vee for lunch and I again had sushi,a chicken skewer, and a glass of water. After work I met another buddy at the track in Savannah for some running. Although I only put in 3.0 miles, I felt like i got a pretty good workout. Running outside is definitely different then on a treadmill. Dinner was fried pork chops and potatoes.

Summary
All in all it was probably another week of simply maintaining my current weight. I know that I have to eat better, I just have to get the will power to do it. John has gained weight 2:3 weeks so he isnt pushing me any. I kind of wish he would lose 5lbs this next week so I have some added motivation again. I really dont mind exercising, but I do love food!

Week 4

Day 1
No breakfast today. I met John for our weekly weigh-ins. This week I was down 1.8lbs according to the scale at our weigh-in location, and John had gained 2.4lbs. I went from losing by 4.0lbs to him to ahead by .2lbs, essentially a dead heat. We are only thru 3 weeks, with 9 more or so to go, but it looks like this thing is going to be close!
Lunch was some unhealthy Chinese food (I did manage my portion size). Dinner was a Subway sandwich, no cheese, no sauces.

Day 2
Today was rough for me personally. I had to sit in lawyers offices in KC for 5+ hours giving a deposition in a case that stems from a work related accident from over a year ago in which an employee of mine was unfortunately killed. I needless to say didnt have much motivation to worry about food or exercise.
Breakfast was a granola bar & a cup of coffee. Lunch was a mongolian buffet. I dont know for sure, but I would venture to guess that lunch was fairly healthy. For those of you who have never ate at a mongolian buffet, there is essentially all raw fresh ingredients. You pick your meats, vegetables, noodles, etc and add a little liquid then you give your bowl to the chef who cooks it all together on a large flat surface using two big wooden sticks. It is delicious!
Dinner was pan sauteed chicken, with some packaged noodles.

Day 3
http://www.chick-fil-a.com/Food/Healthful-Lifestyle
Im ready to get back on the horse! I havent worked out the past two days and Im feeling refreshed. Breakfast was the standard granola bar & cup of coffee. Lunch consisted of a bowl of Italian Wedding Select Harvest soup. When I got home from work I ran 5 miles on the treadmill. For dinner we decided to go to town and find something to eat. After debating for awhile we decided on Chik-Fil-A. I had read some article online recently that listed the top 10 healthiest fast food options, and if my memory serves me correct they were #2 on the list. I ended up eating the 4 chicken strip dinner with a large sweet tea.

Day 4
I awoke on Saturday morning and ate a delicious bowl of Honey Nut Cheerios. An hour or so later i decided i should get a workout in. I ended up running 6 miles, a few more then I had intended. Lunch consisted of a cup of fresh fruit and a Gatorade. Dinner was fresh smoked chicken, baked beans, and a pasta salad courtesy of Josh & Nicolle Downing. It was a great meal, but a crappy night after Mizzou lost to Oklahoma.

Day 5
Another Sunday, another Chiefs loss………
Breakfast was biscuits and gravy with fried potatoes. Lunch was some leftover smoked chicken that i brought home from Josh’s house. Dinner was leftover chicken and noodles from Thursday night. All in all, probably a very bad day considering all 3 meals were relatively unhealthy.

Day 6
Breakfast was one Pop-Tart pastry and a cup of coffee. Lunch was a Subway sandwich, no cheese or sauces. I ran 5 miles on the treadmill after work. Dinner was some oven baked chicken and oven baked homemade fries. The oven baked fries are actually a favorite of mine and are very healthy. My wife and/or I found a recipe on the internet awhile back. Essentially fresh potatoes are cut into french fries. You think toss them in extra virgin olive oil enough to just barely coat them. Place them flat on a pan, season to taste, and bake in the oven. Obviously much more healthy then deep fried french fries.

Day 7
I started the last day of my week off with the staple granola bar & a cup of coffee. Lunch was a Subway footlong sandwich. Dinner was my own little dish that I whipped up. It consisted of cut up chicken breast layered with corn, and topped with Stove Top stuffing. I then baked the dish in the oven. I thought it turned out pretty good, Darcie wasnt a huge fan though. I also ran 5 miles after work.

Summary
I lost .8lbs again this week, the exact same amount as i lost last week. Im down a total of 10.6lbs according to my home scale. Total exercise was 21 treadmill miles. As usual I probably could have ate much healthier, but im trying!