It’s time for a change, in so many ways. This chronicle of my quest for several particular kinds of personal change will focus on diet, exercise and lifestyle changes. I will report meaningful things that occur along the way, positive and negative, inner and outer. I’ll deal with the present, the past and my goals, hopes and fears for the future. Feel free to join me and to share your thoughts, the music, and whatever else falls from these branches.
Soundtracks for the Best Days of Any Week
Independence Day - 7.4.08
April 2008
April 26
"He has you at any stage in your life. He has your youthful idealism. He has you when your relationship is splitting up. He has you when you can't face the world and you look for something higher to get you through. He has you at all stages."
Balance is not always at the top of my list in such times, but it should be, because it makes everything else possible.
And so, three days late, I have administered my weekly weigh-in, down from 249.2 to 248.4 in the 10 days since my last weigh-in, moving in the right direction even if I am 6 ounces behind schedule, and firm, at the very least, in my resolve to continue the BMGS 2.0 campaign's regimen of several days a week of swimming or other exercise and 2500 or fewer calories a day.
I'm mighty pleased today. I started out 40 days and 40 nights ago at the preposterous weight of 273.5, and 10% of me is gone.
I have done this by following the most simple of rules:
1. Cut down my calorie consumption, without starving myself by undereating. 2. Increase my exercise to burn more calories, without wearing myself out by overtraining. 3. Stay accountable to my plan by keeping track of #1 and #2 above by writing 'em down here, rather than subscribing to the stupid belief that either (a) it is not important enough to keep track of; or (b) I can just wing it and not keep track.
I wish there were more steps so I could write a million-dollar diet book, because I will be honest: I do need the dough.
Anyway, if I continue to lose 10% of my body weight every 40 days I will be down to 106 next August, which is about what my Dad weighed when he died of lung cancer at the age of 59 in 1986. I won't go that far, I promise.
But I will celebrate today, with a really huge salad, a great workout, and some of my favorite music. Party on!
Of course, not all 15-year-old kids are dorks, as I was. These guys have it going on. Thanks for the link, Ned!
Total commitment to anything is what makes anything possible, whether it's hitting the high notes on a solo, throwing an unhittable first-pitch circle change with 97-mph arm speed, or getting your weight down. These guys believe in themselves, so they get it done.
All is well in the land of BMGS today, Saturday, May 23, 2009. A busy Saturday with Danny, and we're off to see A Night at the Museum 2 -- I love Bunuel! -- but we leave you with this post from 9.23.2007.
The key to the plan is the plan - Originally posted Sunday, September 23, 2007
Sunday morning, and all is right with the world.
Well, that’s not true by a longshot. But in my personal world there is a lot that is good. Threw some batting practice to Danny yesterday and he was hitting line drives over “the fence” in his yard. Got on the scale this morning and it said I have lost 20 pounds in 23 days. Took in the Red Sox last night eking out a nice, fairly dramatic 9th inning finish to a victory to clinch a playoff spot and cut their division magic number to 6. Got an email from Diane mentioning she has lost 4 pounds on her way to 125 by January. When I saw Danny he was very pleased with some really cool personally autographed Hannah Montana cast photos that an old college friend and classmate, Steve Peterman, had sent. (Steve was an amazing person when he arrived at the little college on the Charles almost 40 years ago and he is every bit as generous, funny and real today). All it takes are little things to make my day.
I got home at 5:30 yesterday afternoon and knew I had 90 minutes before the Sox game. I could easily have just kicked back for an hour but I knew how much better I would feel if I got to the gym. By 5:45 I was stepping on to the elliptical machine. I only did a little over 35 minutes, but I did a lot of climbing and resistance and had my heart rate over 150 for over half the time and really felt limbered up and good afterward. I had been a little stiff yesterday morning after my Fresh Pond run Friday, so it was really nice to loosen up, and I slept like a baby last night.
A little thing like getting to the gym one time made a big difference.
Two stupid little tips here, geeky ideas on the weight loss front:
In Diane’s email she mentioned the following: “I did this really nerdy thing. I gathered all my "take out" menus and highlighted all the foods I could order. Example, Chinese, 4 shrimp boiled and wrapped in rice & sea weed... Sub Shop, small side salad topped with seafood salad and a half pita pocket... you get the idea. I'm such a GEEK!!”
Well, you can call it nerdy, Diane, but in my book (or my blog) it is exactly the kind of thing that makes the difference between success and failure. Being prepared, so that you don’t get stuck making a hasty bad menu choice, can keep you within your daily target and make you feel confident in how you are doing overall. That kind of day-to-day confidence is as important as anything in being successful, whether it is a weight loss plan or something else.
The key to the plan is the plan.
Now here’s my own stupid little tip. As you may have noticed, my breakfast most days consists of some combination of cereal, fresh fruit, cream, and soy milk. Meanwhile, I have been trying to save calories, avoid artificial sweeteners and reduce my coffee intake by drinking my coffee as close to black as possible.
Ever notice how there’s usually a fair amount of cream or milk left in the bowl after you finish the fruit or cereal? The natural thing to do is to lift up the bowl and guzzle it down. But I do something slightly different. I pour it into my coffee cup. I’ve already counted the calories, and the result is a better cup of coffee, even if the last sips of coffee may be a little crunchier than usual.
Like I said, it is a stupid little tip. But it works for me.
In today’s soundtrack, The Robert Cray Band’s “Twenty” is a beautiful song about a terrible subject. 3,797 American dead. Roughly 10 times that many casualties, and who knows how many Iraqi dead? And for what? Don’t get me started, but did you notice Cheney admitted the other day that it’s all about the oil?
All is well with my eyes, for those who followed my travails yesterday after an otherwise successful and satisfying third straight day at the pool: 12 laps Tuesday, 14 laps Wednesday, and 16 laps (400 yards) Thursday.
I bought goggles and allergy-relief eyedrops. The burning still returned gradually to my eyes after I applied the eyedrops twice yesterday, but -- since the allergic reaction was effectively the same as being sick -- I took an hour nap in the afternoon and woke up to find that the burning was gone. Some puffiness remain, I was told by an acquaintance who pays more attention to my face than I do.
So I got to thinking that the various eye symptoms I was experiencing might be compounded, once the pool's chlorine set them off, by the hours I spend staring at a computer screen (hopefully seeing new words appear on the screen fairly regularly). I continue to give my eyes a rest through last night, applied some eyewash in addition to the eyedrops, and changed my plan for today: I would swim in mid-day rather than when the pool is open from 7 to 9, which would give me a chance to assess whether a morning work session at the computer -- yes, that's right now -- would inflict more irrittaion on me.
And here's what I have to report:
My eyes are good, so I am looking forward to the next swim, with goggles and eyedrops and eyewash at the ready.
However, that swim is not going to come at noon today as I'd thought, because after it was too late to change my plans back and do a morning swim I learned that Danny is home sick from school today and I offered to split the day of Danny-care with his Mom. So, since I already planned on taking one day a week off from the pool, I'll make the off day today and take Danny and Brownie for a little walk around the neighborhood, instead, if they are up for it.
So there may be a plan for BMGS, but the underlying plan is that I am blessed to have a life that can trump my plans.
And just to make it easier on me, I was happy to note from the scale today that my weight is down from 256.2 to 255.0. I ate very moderately yesterday -- some pasta and salad left over from Paparazzi for lunch, as comfort food when I was feeling sick, and the only things I ate after that were two pieces of cinnamon toast and a banana smoothie with half a shot of Frangelico.
Meanwhile, got to hurry to finish as much as I can of a day of work before the Danny drop.
Mark Flanagan is an old and dear friend. All too many years ago we were copy boys together at the Boston Globe, and we built a largely nocturnal friendship exploring the magical, mystical and maudlin haunts of Boston and surrounding environs as we found them many nights after putting in our shifts and leaving the building on Morrissey Boulevard around midnight.
I tried way back then to make Mark a character in some fiction I was attempting to write, but I could never do him justice. It turns out now that he is doing justice himself to many a story: his own and others', in the lyrical songs and poetry (such as his "On Fireflies") he has created for the album Creekside Rhapsody.
"Pheromones" is a new occasional feature of this Blog, in which I will share and share alike from among the reader creations and suggestions that flow back toward me. Feel free to send yours in to me either as comments on the blog or by sending me an email at hppress@gmail.com .
The best book cannot grant self control and discipline.
Donna