March 3rd Food Diary

I didn't have an interview today but instead I laid in bed watching Sports Center on ESPN until I had to get ready to go to my meeting at 10 a.m.

For lunch I made some scrambled eggs and sprinkled them with the last of the ground sausage I had from last night. I used six eggs and it really hit the spot. Then in the afternoon I had a cup of yogurt.

March 3rd Exercise Diary

Walked outside for thirty minutes today. I walked up to the school and back and did three light jogs while I was walking. When I got back I did 4 sets of six sit ups and six push ups. That made four days walking this week so I am very proud of my self. Now to keep it going.

I also went to the grocery store and got some food for the next week this afternoon. I know it isn't intense walking but it is still walking. :o)

March 2nd Food Diary

I had another interview this morning so I didn't eat any breakfast again. I don;t have an interview tomorrow morning so I will get some breakfast and a cup of coffee in tomorrow morning I hope.

For lunch I had a peanut butter and jelly sandwich again today and a glass of water. Then in the afternoon I had a cup of yogurt.

For supper I tried to make a pizza but things didn't go as planned. The pizza crust was suppose to spread in a pan then you put on our sauce and toppings but for some reason my crust wouldn't stretch right and kept tearing. Finally after it was well beyond mutilated I gave up on the crust. That was when my wife had the idea to use the four hamburger buns we had to make eight mini pizzas. It worked out well, we placed the buns on a baking sheet and put pizza sauce on the top and the bottom of the buns. Then we added pork sausage (The pork browned in the microwave),pepperoni (we bought turkey pepperoni at the store this week so it is a little healthier) and cheese. Then we put them in the oven for about 5 minutes then turned on the broiler for another minute or two. They came out tasting great. After supper I had a bit of a binge attack and ate two bags of microwave popcorn while we watched TV. Take out the late night popcorn binge and I was really happy with my day.

March 2nd Exercise Diary

Today I did a 30 minute walk up to the school and back. I did three jogging stints on the walk. It was a little cool today (30 degrees) especially when I was walking into the wind but it was sunny so I couldn't resist getting outside. When I got back I did four sets of six sit ups and six push ups. I didn't do much house work today other then dishes because I had some paper work to fill out for a meeting I have tomorrow. I am meeting with a lady about taking some classes to brush up on some of my programming skills I haven't used in awhile at the local community college.

March 1st Food Diary

I skipped breakfast today because I had an interview this morning and I didn't want to foul my breath up. The interview went good, i don;t know if I was exactly what they were looking for but I feel that I can learn it and I think they liked me and what experience i did have to offer. Being my first interview I was very pleased with it and I am even more ready for the next one tomorrow.

For lunch I had a peanut butter and jelly sandwich again. It tasted great and I love the crunch of the crunchy peanut butter. I also had some tortilla chips and salsa after my sandwich.

This afternoon I had a cup of yogurt after I did some cleaning.

For supper I made Runza casserole with ground turkey instead of hamburger. It was so good that I broke down and had two plates of it. Unfortunately that means no left overs for lunch.

Runza Casserole

1lb Hamburger
1/3 of head of cabbage (finely chopped) or 1 bag of shredded green cabbage from store
minced onion (to taste)
Lawry's seasoning salt (to taste)
black pepper (to taste)
little garlic Powder- I just shake some in
2 tubes of croissant rolls
sliced or shredded cheese

Brown the hamburger w/ the seasonings. Add in the cabbage when hamburger is basically browned (I usually drain it first) and cover the skillet to let it steam. Stir occasionally because the cabbage sticks to the pan. I usually add a little more seasoning salt and pepper. Spread one tube of crossiant rolls flat in the bottom of the pan 9x13 pour in the cabbage/meat mix - cover with cheese then put the other tube of croissant rolls on top. Bake 350 for about 15-20 minutes - until top is browned.

Note: One thing that I have started doing since I had trouble getting the bottom crust cooked through is to put the first tube of crossiant rolls in and then stick it in the oven for about 4-5 minutes to start it baking and then put the meat/cabbage mix on it.

March 1st Exercise Diary

I went on a 30 minute walk again today. I walked by the school near our house again, this time making sure it was earlier so all the parents weren't sitting around watching. I added a few light jogs into the mix today. They winded me a little but it felt good. When I got back I did four sets of six sit ups and six total push ups. I know it seems like a small amount of sit ups and push ups but I am trying to work myself into them. I also did some dishes, folded blankets and sheets and picked up the living room. Now I am going to relaxe and get ready to make some supper in a couple of hours.

February 28th Food Diary

I didn't have any breakfast because I was suppose to have a job interview that got postponed due to an illness by the interviewer. I didn't want to eat or drink anything that would cause me to have bad breath and after I found out the interview was canceled I started doing other things and forgot about breakfast.

For lunch I had a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, some sour cream and cheddar chips and a some nibs. then in the afternoon I had a fat free yogurt.

For supper a new Fazoli's opened up near us and they sent us a coupon for two free meals that we took advantage of. I had the Rigatoni Romano, it is a baked rigatoni pasta with sliced italian sausage, red pepper flakes in a meat sauce covered by melted provolone and parmesan cheeses. It also came with a slice of pepperoni pizza and a bread stick. I had a glass of lemonade with it is well. It was a very filling meal for free, so filling that I didn't have anything to eat after supper.

I am very proud of myself for getting lemonade again. I haven't had a pop since January 2nd of this year. I can't lie I did have some Jack and Cokes on vacation last week but I don't count that because it was in a mixed drink.

February 28th Exercise Diary

Today I went out and walked at a brisk pace for 30 minutes. I don't know how far I walked but it felt good to get out there and be active. I walked by the elementary school near my house and didn't realize when I left that it was almost time for school to get out. All the parents were parked around the school waiting for their kids to get let out. I hope no one thought I was a creep walking around the school as the kids got out with my hooded sweatshirt and sunglasses on. I think I will walk a little earlier tomorrow to avoid that. Ater I got back from my walk I did some sit ups and push ups. I had been planning on adding sit ups and push ups to my work out routine before I lost my job so I figured why not add them in now.

I also did some work around the house this morning that counts as exercise I think. I took some of our luggage from our trip down to the basement, I emptied and loaded the dishwasher and washed some other dishes by hand. Over all it has been a very productive day.

February 27th Weigh In

I weighed myself on the morning of Sunday February 27th and I weighed 316.5lbs. I am pretty excited to be almost down to 315lbs and my new goal is to get down to 310lbs. I have come a long weigh since the beginning of the year and I hope to keep going further and further no matter what life throws at me.

Long Absence Explained

It has been awhile since I have updated the blog but I am going to get back at it starting today. The reason I have been absente is because on February 8th my company did some reorganization and eliminated my postion. I was laid off immediately and I have been in a bit of a funk for awhile. Then last week my wife and I went on a previously planned and paid for vacation which was really nice. It let me relaxe and get out of the funk I had been in and we had a lot of fun to. We ate, drank and walked a lot on vacation and I came back feeling great. It is a new week and almost a new month now so I am going to get a new positive and healthy outlook going. Because of the layoff I will now keep you guys updated on my search for a new job as well as my weight loss stories.

A good thing that came out of all of this is that I was naturally a little stressed and it caused me to shed a few pounds from all the worrying. I know that isn't a good way to lose weight but if I can keep it off I will take it.

February 7th Food Diary

I did pretty well today on food. I started out with a bowl of Special K with Red Berries. I had a glass of V* strawberry banana juice and a cup of coffee with it. Then I forgot my work coffee on the counter on my way out the door. It was a little rough without my usual caffeinated boost in the morning but I made it.

At break one of my friends brought some Chex Mix his wife had made over the weekend. I had a couple of hand hulls and a bottle of water.

At lunch I had a microwave dinner, enchilada bake, a yogurt and an orange.

I did not finish my eight cups of water for the day but i will try to do better tomorrow.

For supper we had whole wheat pasta with Alfredo sauce, a lettuce salad with Dorothy Lynch dressing and a little cheese and two bread sticks. I also had two glasses of 1% chocolate milk with my meal. I was proud of myself and my wife because we diversified out dinner. Instead of just having pasta we made a little salad and bread sticks to go with it making it a better balanced dinner, we hope. It also kept me eating only one bowl of pasta which is a new goal of mine when eating. If I can keep myself to a one plate policy that will hopefully help with my over eating at supper. Also eating a well balanced supper should help me with eating less after supper, like last night when I had didn’t feel the need for an evening snack.

February 7th Exercise Diary

I did the elliptical for thirty minutes today! I went 3.2 miles and I did 13 speed intervals of over 7.0mph during my work out. I did 4 of the intervals for thirty seconds and nine of them at one minute. I really got a good sweat going and it felt great. Who cares if I am losing weight slowly as long as I am losing it and feeling better every day.

February 4th - February 6th Weekend Update

Friday night we got dressed up and went to the Chocolate Lovers Fantasy fundraiser downtown at the Embassy Suites for Cedars. It was GREAT! They had 18 different chefs that had made all kinds of chocolate delicacies. I had from the simple chocolate cake and brownies to chocolate covered potatoes chips and chocolate covered alligator. It was a great time and I was ready t puke chocolate by the time we left, it was my kind of night. Afterwards we were craving some salt so we stopped at McDonald's on the way home and got some fries to eat.

Saturday we went shopping at the mall and got groceries in the morning. We had planed to come home and make some Mac and Cheese for lunch but we ran a little long at the mall and we were starving by the time we left the grocery store so garbed some Wendy's on the way home. I had a Spicy chicken sandwich, fries and a lemonade. What I was happy about was that I did not Large Size my meal at lunch. I am starting to take steps in the right direction.

Saturday night we were going to Omaha to see the Mary Poppins Musical at the Orpheum Theater. We decided that we would stop at Anthony's Steakhouse for dinner on our way to the show. That was an unmitigated disaster. We got there and found out that they take reservations, witch we didn't have(I mean really who takes reservations anymore) but they said it would be 15-20 minutes for us to get a table. It was 6:10 and the show wasn't until eight so we decided to wait. At around 6:35 I was getting annoyed and my wife said that they had just told the couple that had come in right behind us that it would be another twenty minutes for their table. I went up to the hostess stand and talked to them and they promised that they would get us a table in less than ten minutes. I looked at my watch and said if it wasn't in ten minutes we would have to leave if we wanted to eat before our show. So finally at 6:45 we get a table. We figured we still had time to eat and get to the show so we were happy. Then we waited for our waitress, and waited, and waited. Finally she came and took our drink orders and an appetizer order then we didn't see here again for awhile. Finally she came and took our en tree orders. Finally our salads came and by the time we finished them our waitress cam over and said that she had forgotten to turn our ticket in so i found would be a little later. At this point it was almost 7:30 and I told her we just want to pay for what we have eaten and go because we had a show to get to. So even though I ordered a plate of food all I got was some chips and dip and a Salad before we had to leave. On the bright side I loved the show! It was a fun colorful show with great music and great acting. By the time the show was over we were getting pretty hungry so when we got back to town we stopped at McDonald's again on our way home. This time I got a McDouble and a large Hi-C orange drink. The night was really fun but the restaurant and it's service was very disappointing, needless to say we won't be going back there again.

Sunday we did some cleaning around the house and had subs delivered from Mr. Goodcent's (This seems to be a recurring trend) for lunch. Then for Super Bowl Sunday we just had some fun appetizer foods during the game. We had Mini Beef Tacos, Mac & Cheese Bites, cheese queso dip with chips and some mixed caramelized nuts (All from Tarder Joe's). I also had a few beers during the game. It was a fun game and fun food. Maybe not the healthily but hey it was the Super Bowl.

February 5th Weigh In

I weighed my self this morning and the results were encouraging. As I stated the other day I felt like I over ate a lot this week at supper but still ended up losing a half a pound! I am very excited by this, if I can work on my eating habits the half pounds should keep melting off. Now I have a goal for next week o9f eating better and to keep doing my work outs as well. Yeah Two Weeks In A Row!!!!

February 4th Food Diary

It is Doughnut Friday and I had a apple fritter this morning. It was really good and a little big but I still only had the one so that is a good thing. I also had my morning coffee with creamer on the way to work.

For lunch I got held up by an accident so I just grabbed a ruben wrap and some sushi while I was at trader Joe's getting some Super Bowl food. It was ok but nothing to write home about.

As you saw by the previous post tonight is all about the Chocolate! I will let you know how it was later this weekend.

Big Weekend Coming Up

I am very excited about this weekend. Tonight (Friday Night) we are going to a Chocolate Lovers Fantasy at a local ballroom. They have all kinds of different chocolate foods and sculptures from local chefs. I have wanted to go the last couple of years that they have had it but we have been busy so i was very excited when we were free for it this weekend. Then on Saturday my wife and I are going to get dresses up again and head just down the road to Omaha for a nice meal at Anthony's Steakhouse and then downtown to the Orpheum Theater to see the musical Mary Poppins. So this will not the healthiest weekend eating wise, but it is going to be a lot of fun.

February 3rd Food Diary

The weather has died down for a few days so I got to have a bowl of grape nuts and a glass of V8 strawberry banana juice for breakfast. Then on the way to work I had my coffee with creamer in it.

For lunch I had left over Fried rice from last night (it might be even better warmed up), a strawberry yogurt and an orange.

I finished my eight cups of water with supper since the afternoon seemed to fly by.

For supper I over indulged again with two bowls of fried rice. I also had six mini egg rolls and some sweet and sour sauce to dip them in. After supper I had a bag of microwave kettle corn pop corn.

I need to cut myself back to one bowl or plate of food at supper again. I was doing really well the last few weeks but I feel like I have over eaten a lot this week. So next week I am going to work on that.

February 3rd Exercise Diary

I did 1.5 miles in the treadmill again today in twenty eight minutes. I did two five percent grade intervals for a minute each, then two ten percent grade intervals for a minute each, next one 15 percent grade interval for a minute and then I did one minute at a light 5.5mph jog. After that I did a minute at a fifteen percent grade, next I did a minute at a ten percent grade twice and then a minute at a five percent grade twice. That completed my fifth week of working out in a row.

You may have noticed that I have been increasing my time on the treadmill/elliptical by 2 minutes every week. I started at twenty minutes and next week I will get to my goal of doing thirty minutes 4 times a week. I am pretty excited about this, when I started it seemed like thirty minutes were a long ways off but it is finally here. After my vacation in a few weeks I am going to start riding my new recumbent bike in the evening when I get home doing the same thing starting at twenty and working towards thirty minutes. When I get to thirty minutes there as well I will be doing one hour of cardio work out four times a week. It seems like it is a long ways off but after doing this I know I can do it.

February 2nd Food Diary

My schedule is all out of whack because of this dumb winter weather so I ran out of time this morning and didn't get any breakfast in for the second day in a row. I did get my coffee made (just barely) and had that on the way to work.

For lunch I had brought some Buffalo Sneakers. They are like Pizza Rolls but lower in fat and calories and they go in the microwave. They are a little spicy and have good flavor to them. I also have a cherry cobbler yogurt and an orange.

I finished my eight cups of water in the afternoon.

For supper my wife made chicken fried rice. I love, love, LOVE her chicken fried rice and over indulged in it with two bowls. We use steeped chicken breasts, scallions, eggs (the cholesterol free kind in a box), white rice, soy sauce and fried rice seasoning packet we get at the grocery store. We also made mini egg rolls which I had six of. The best part of chicken fried rice is that we make a lot so there is extra for lunch tomorrow and more supper tomorrow night.

February 2nd Exercise Diary

I walked on the treadmill for twenty eight minutes today. I did ten inclined verticals and a light jog for a minute in the middle. I ended up going 1.5 miles. I watched the news and listened to my iPod while I was walking and it seemed to make the time go a little faster. Also there was no one in the workout room while I was down there which is the way I like it.

February 1st Food Diary

Mother Nature stepped in and caused me to miss breakfast with her snow and ice. So all I had this morning, after being out side in the cold, was a much needed cup of coffee with creamer in it.

For lunch I had a meatloaf and mashed potatoes frozen dinner, an orange delight yogurt and a orange.

I didn't finish my 8 cups of water today. The afternoon flew by today.

For supper we braved the freezing temperatures, wind and snow to get some Temperature Tuesday Runzas. I mean come on they were only one cent (with purchase of fries and a drink). In all reality I wouldn't have even thought about going out in the weather we were having if I didn't need to get gas. I had a Runza, Large fries, and a large lemonade. I also got some ranch dipping sauce for my fries. Then after supper I had a small bowl of Crunch N Munch while we watched TV.

February 1st Exercise Diary

I got up early to do a little snow blowing but it wasn't as bad as i thought it was going to be so it wasn't much of a work out. Then after work I had to do a little snow blowing again but once again it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. Over all it didn't take a lot of effort to get the drive way snow free which was a nice change of pace from the last few snow storms we have had.

At lunch I went twenty eight minutes on the elliptical again. I averaged 6.3mph and went 3.0 miles. I did twelve speed intervals interval, 7 at a minute and 5 at thirty seconds.

I thought I had out lasted the lady in the weight room last week when she didn't show up last Wednesday and Thursday and then didn't show this Monday. Unfortunately she showed back up today so our battle of wills will continue. LOL

January 31st Food Diary

For breakfast I had a bowl of grape nuts and a glass of V8 Strawberry Banana juice and then a cup of coffee and creamer on the way to work.

At lunch I had a Three Cheese Chicken and Rice frozen dinner, a Strawberry Banana Yogurt and an orange.

I finished my eight cups of water with supper.

For supper we baked some chicken breasts and when they were almost done we put bacon and cheese on them and let the cheese melt. Then I dipped them in a little BBQ sauce. I ended up eating two breasts. I probably should have just had one but they were so good I caved in and had the second one. After supper I had a granola bar and a bag of microwave kettle corn popcorn.

Janaury 31st Exercise Diary

I did twenty eight minutes on the elliptical today with twelve speed intervals of 30 seconds or a minute. I averaged 6.3mph and went 3.0 miles. It felt really good to get back on the elliptical after a few days off. This officially marked the end of the month and I went a total of 30.9 miles this month between the elliptical and the tread mill. Since next month is a short month and I will be gone for a week I won’t be able to eclipse that mileage mark in February but in March, with the addition of an evening workout, I should have no problem going farther.

January 28th - January 30th Weekend Update

We ran some errands on Friday night and on the way home I finally gave in to the temptation of twenty chicken nuggets for five dollars at McDonald's. I also had a large fry and a snack size McFlurry.

On Saturday I weighed in and lost weight! Woo Hoo!!! Then for lunch my wife got some tacos from Amigo's on her way home from work. I had two soft tacos and two crunchy tacos. I didn't snack at all during the day witch I was very proud of. Then for supper we meet my family for my Mom's Birthday and had pizza at Ramono's Pizza. I had three cheese bread sticks and two pieces of meaty pizza. Then we went back to my sister’s house and had some TCBY Frozen Yogurt cake.

Sunday we got up early and went to meet my wife's family for her Uncles 90th Birthday. We ate a brunch buffet at the Outpost Grille. The food was not the best quality or selection, so luckily that meant I didn't over eat. I started out with the best item on the buffet a made to order omelet. Mine had ham, bacon, mushrooms and cheese. I also had a few waffles, they were pretty good to. I had two waffles with syrup on them and two with strawberries on them. The rest of the buffet was sad to say the least. I did have a piece of sausage with my second plate of waffles but it was really dry and looked like it had been laying in the warmer for way to long. To top off the meal I had a sad looking apple turnover that turned out to taste really good. By the time we got home it was late so we just ordered some sandwiches from Mr. Goodcent’s and had them delivered. I had a Turkey Artichoke Club. It was a new sandwich on their menu and it was good enough that I would order it again.

Over all it was a pretty good weekend, I didn’t feel like I over ate too much and I didn't binge or graze at all.

The exciting news of the weekend was that we got the call that our recumbent bike is in and it will be delivered at the end of the month. I am very excited to get the bike and start working out in the evening along with my lunch time workouts.

Snack Size Should Be The Right Size

We stopped at McDonald's last night for supper and we got two snack size McFlurries with our meal. My wife made the comment on the way that she loved this size cause it was little but i probably didn't like the size. I came back with "You know what this may not be the size that I want but it is the size I should have". Talk about a light going on, I am a big guy and always eat big sizes but if I want this weight lose thing to take hold of me I need to start eating the snack size instead of the large size (Or Extra Large or Ginormous sizes). It is going to be a culture change for me but if I can stop getting large blizzards and large sizing my meals when we go out to fast food it is going to help me a lot in the long run. So from this point forward my new motto is Snack size is the Right Size.

Weigh In January 29th

I did it!!!!! The scale read 327lbs when I got on this morning! Wow it took me 4 weeks but I have cracked that 330lbs mark. Wow I am so excited. Last night we had chicken nuggets and fries from McDonald's so I was sure that it would just give me the taunting Err message again. I think I even let out a little squeal when looked down at the screen and saw 327lbs. Now I am going to try and maintain it for a few weeks then set a new goal. YIPEE!!!!!!!!

January 28th Food Diary

I started off the morning with a cup of coffee with creamer on the way to work. Then i kept with my new one doughnut on doughnut Friday rule when I got to work. I had a cake doughnut with chocolate icing on it.

For lunch I stopped at a Sushi and Grill after running some errands at lunch. I had a bowl of the miso soup, some white rice, a small salad, some chicken teriyaki stir-fry with onions, mushrooms and zucchini and a California roll. It was great and moderately healthy, I think. Now on to a busy weekend that includes visits with both sets of family.

January 27th Food Diary

For breakfast I had the last of the egg casserole and a glass of strawberry banana juice. Then I had my coffee with creamer in it on the way to work.

For lunch I had left over stir fry from last night, an orange and Cinnamon Roll yogurt. The Cinnamon roll yogurt was as good as I had hoped it would be. I always get the fat free 100 calorie yogurt when I go to the store. It tastes great, is filling and is actually healthy for me. I usually get the Yoplait brand but if other brands are on sale I will get them as long as they are fat free and right around 100 calories.

In the afternoon I finished my eight cups of water. Also it was a coworker’s birthday and he brought in some cookies. So I had a chocolate chip and a sugar cookie at points in the afternoon.

For supper we were feeling a little lazy and running a little late so we made a frozen pepperoni pizza. I had half it and we also had some slices of cheese bread we had bought at the store. Then for dessert I had a Christmas tree cake and a brownie. Not the best night but I didn't binge and we didn't eat out so those are pluses.

January 27th Exercise Diary

I went twenty six minutes on the elliptical today. I averaged 6.2mph and went 2.7 miles. I am so excited that this makes it four weeks in a row working out. That is an entire month! I will be feeling fit as a fiddle by the time I got to Vegas at the end of February if I keep this up. Which is good cause there is a lot of walking to do in Vegas.

January 26th Food Diary

For breakfast I warmed up some egg casserole and washed it down with the last of the apple juice in my fridge. Then I had my usual cup of coffee with creamer on the way to work.

For lunch I had the last of the pizza we made on Monday night, an orange and some yogurt.

I didn't get in eight cups of water until supper tonight because I got caught up in some work I was doing this afternoon and didn't drink as much water as I usually do in that time. I did get ti in though and that is what is important.

For supper we made beef stir fry. We cooked some meat in the electric wok and then added fresh red pepper, onion and mushrooms. (We wanted to add zucchini as well but the store didn't have any last weekend) after we added the vegetables we added a packet of stir fry seasoning we got at the store. It created a nice little glaze over the meat and vegetables. Then we scooped the meat and vegetables on to a bed of freshly made white rice and I added a little soy sauce. It was the first time we have made this and it was great, we will be doing it again the future. I was very proud of myself for only having one plate of food and then I did not have any snacks after supper. I would call this a good day of eating!

January 26th Exercise Diary

Today I did twenty six minutes on the treadmill. I did multiple inclined increments of five, ten and fifteen percent grades. I went 1.4 miles and walked between 3.3mph and 3.5mph. It is amazing how different a treadmill and an elliptical work out your body. It felt like a completely different work out as opposed to my elliptical work outs the last couple of days. My ankles and calves felt like they got a lot more work out where as on the elliptical it is usually my thighs that feel like they got a harder work out.

P.S. The lady who has been using the treadmill wasn’t down there today. Maybe she takes Wednesdays off or maybe I have outlasted here this easily. I am betting it is the former but I can hope. LOL

Loseing Weight Is Hard

So I have been working out four times a week for a month now. I have also been trying to eat better which has been successful some of the time. Another thing I did is cut out pop. I have not had a taste of pop since January 2nd. And after all of that I still can't get the scale to tell me how much I weigh. I thought that I was just a little over 330lbs but maybe I was wrong and I was a lot farther past 330lbs then I thought I was. I also know, from having watched other people close to me struggle with weight loss, that it is a lot harder to lose a pound than it is to gain a pound. I know that if I keep plugging away I will eventually breakthrough that 330lbs barrier. I also know that I am making myself healthier every day I eat right and exercise. I am starting to feel healthier in my everyday life and that is a reward in its self.

January 25th Food Diary

I warmed up some egg casserole and had it with a glass of juice for breakfast. Then I had a cup of coffee with a new Vanilla Cinnamon creamer in it on my way to work. The new creamer is really good and I figure it adds about seventy calories to my coffee. When this creamer is gone I think I am going to try a fat free or light creamer and see if I can tell a difference.

For lunch I had a piece of the left over pizza from last night, an orange, and a yogurt. The yogurt was Strawberry Shortcake and it was great. I am going to have to pick up a few more of them when I go to the store next week.

I finished my right cups of water in the afternoon.

For supper we hit up Runza for Temperature Tuesday. I had a Runza, a large fry and a large lemonade. After supper I had a few peanut clusters but only a few, no bingeing tonight.

January 25th Exercise Diary

I went 2.7 miles on the elliptical in twenty six minutes today and I averaged 6.1mph. For awhile I had been alternating every day between the elliptical and the treadmill but lately there has been a lady coming down and using the treadmill when I am down there so I can't use it. This just started about a week ago so I am hoping this is either a new year’s resolution or she is waiting for it to get nice out so she can walk outside. Either way it is my goal to outlast her, until she gives up on her new year’s resolution, starts walking outside or retires. LOL I guess we all need something to keep us going.

Browning Hamburger and Other Ground Meats

Awhile back I talked about browning meat in the microwave. You can do any meat hamburger, ground turkey and ground sausage is what I have done but you can do any other ground meat you have around as well. It is a practice I learned from my Mom and it is healthier then browning meat in a pan on the stove because you don't cook the meat in its fat. It is fairly simple all you need is a plastic strainer and a ceramic bowl that it fits in so that there is ample space for the fat to collect below the strainer. First you place the meat in the strainer and set your microwave to fifty percent cooking power cover the strainer with a paper towel, or as I usually do a paper plate, and cook it for five minutes. Then take it out and use a spatula to break up and mix the meat. Next recover the meat and place it back in the microwave. Once gain set the microwave to fifty percent cooking power and cook for another five minutes. Take it out again and use the spatula to break up and mix the meat. Finally recover and place back in the microwave at eighty percent power for three minutes. Now you should have a pound of nicely browned meat that works great for many things and is much healthier than if you browned it on the stove in its own fat.

January 24th Food Diary

For breakfast I had a piece of the egg casserole from Sunday, a glass of apple juice and a cup of coffee with the last of my pumpkin spice creamer in it.

For Lunch I had the rest of the frozen pizza from Sunday’s lunch, a yogurt and a orange.

In the afternoon I finished my 8 cups of water even though I had a hour and a half meeting to go to.

For supper we made homemade pizza with sausage, turkey pepperoni and mushrooms. It turned out really good and I had two big pieces. My big problem came when my wife brought home some caramel peanut clusters and cashews I binged on before supper. I hate binging and it makes me feel bad afterwards but sometimes it is like an alcoholic who can't stop drinking and you don’t realize it until you have gone too far. On the bright side this is my first binge in about a week so let’s hope I can keep the next one at bay for even longer.

January 24th Exercise Diary

I hit the elliptical today for twenty six minutes. I went 2.6 miles at an average of 6.0mph. I was very pleased by the number. I was hoping I could just do the same as I did last Friday and get 2.4 miles. Now hopefully I can get on the tread mill tomorrow and do some inclined increments.

January 21st - January 23rd Weekend Update

Over all it was a pretty good weekend. I feel like I ate pretty well, didn't over eat and did some physical activity. On Friday night we ran some errands so we got a Papa Murphy's pizza on the way home. I had some bread sticks and only had 2 pieces of pizza.

On Saturday my parents were in town so we meet them for lunch at Runza where I had a double cheeseburger, large onion rings, large lemonade and a bowl of broccoli cheese soup. This was probably my worst meal. In hind sight I should have had a single burger and no soup but I had skipped breakfast and I was starving. Saturday afternoon and evening we hunkered down and watched some movies during a Midwest snow storm. While we watched the movies I had a bag of microwave popcorn in the afternoon and then two hotdogs for supper. Saturday afternoon I also made up an egg casserole for breakfast on Sunday and all of next week. It is a really simple recipe, I will put up later, that you make the day before and let sit in the fridge overnight before you bake it.

Sunday morning I got up and did a little physical activity. I saw the sun coming out around 8:30a.m. so I got my winter gear on and fired up the snow blower. I cleared off a 3 foot drift on the driveway and all of our sidewalks in about 20-30 minutes. Before I had gone out I threw the egg casserole in the oven so when I got back inside it would be ready to eat. The casserole was great and I had a glass of juice and a few cups of coffee with it to warm me back up. For lunch I had half of a frozen pizza. Then for supper we ordered some sandwiches from a local sub shop.

January 22nd Weigh In

The scale is still taunting me with Err but I feel better and healthier. Plus I have officially moved in a notch on my belt! Hopefully the elusive 330lbs is not far off now.

January 21st Food Diary

For breakfast today I took part in Doughnut Friday. I had a pudding filled doughnut and a bottle of tropical juice from the vending machine.

For lunch I had frozen dinner lasagna, yogurt and a small orange.

In the afternoon I finished my 8 cups of water for the 4th time this week.

January 21st Exercise Diary

I wanted to do the treadmill today but it was being used when I got the workout room today so I did twenty four minutes on the elliptical again instead. I must be getting stronger or more use to working out because I did 2.4 miles at an average speed of 6.0mph today. I was surprised and excited by this. If I can get to the point where I am averaging 6.0mph every time I am on the elliptical that would be awesome!

I went 4/4 this week working out again for the third straight week. I am very proud of myself. I am finding that I am starting to look forward to working-out every day. That can only be a good thing as far as I am concerned. Now I am looking forward for a few days of rest then back to the grind next week to make it an entire month of working out. Wow time is flying by, now if only the pounds would start to melt off.

New Goal Weight

I decided this week that my new goal is just to get to 330lbs so my scale will show me how much I weigh. Then I will reset the goal to a more lofty weight lose goal after that. You can see the change reflected in the side bar.

January 20th Food Diary

For breakfast I had my slandered bowl of grape nuts and a glass of V8 strawberry and banana juice. Also I remembered by coffee today with creamer today so I had that when I got to work.

For lunch I had my favorite frozen dinner the Enchilada Bake, yogurt and a small orange.

Almost didn’t finish my water before the end of the day but I did and that is what matters.

We ordered out for some Chinese for supper. I had General Tso’s Chicken, fried rice and crab rangoon. I know it was not a healthy meal but what we had planned for supper didn’t work out because some of it had gone bad and nothing else we had around the house sounded appetizing. I am going to try and have a good weekend to make up for it.

January 20th Exercise Diary

Today I got a little work out in before work as I snowblowed the driveway for twentyish minutes. It was such a light snow and with no wind it was almost pleasant be outside under the star filled sky this morning with the glistening white snow all around me.

I did twenty-four minutes on the elliptical today and went 2.2 miles. I did speed increments and had an average speed of 5.8mph. I had a trying morning so I burned off a little steam with the work out hence the higher than normal average speed.

January 19th Food Diary

For breakfast I had a bowl of grape nuts with skim milk and a glass of V8 strawberry banana juice. I also made a cup of coffee with creamer in it and left it on the counter at home.

For lunch I had a salisbury steak and mashed potato frozen dinner, a yogurt and a small orange.

In the afternoon I polished off my eight cups of water.

For supper we made Doritos Casserole (See Recipe Below) with ground turkey meat instead of hamburger on it. I put lettuce, light sour cream and some taco sauce on top. Then after dinner I had a bag of microwave popcorn while we watched TV.

Doritos Casserole Recipe:
1lbs of ground meat browned
1 bag of Doritos
1 can of enchilada sauce
1 bag of shredded cheese

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Fill a cake pan with the bag of Doritos then scatter the browned meat on top. Next pour the enchilada sauce evenly over the chips and meat. Then cover the top of it with the bag of cheese. Place the pan in oven for 5 - 10 minutes or until the cheese is melted and the top of the chips are browning. Remove from oven and dish on to plates and add any toppings you would like. (Ex. Sour Cream, Lettuce, Tomatoes, Onion, Black Olives, ect.)

January 19th Exercise Diary

Today I hit the treadmill for twenty four minutes. I went a total of 1.25 miles! I did seven one minute inclined intervals, two at five percent, four at ten percent and one in the middle at fifteen percent. The fifteen percent was really hard but I did it.

I talk about intervals a lot and there is a reason I do them. I have read multiple times that by increasing your speed or grade for short intervals in the middle of your walking is suppose to keep your body burring fat for a greater amount of time. The first few times I did the speed and incline intervals it really killed me. After two weeks I am getting use to them so they aren't as hard and I am really starting to like them. Now if I could just see that weight loss benefit they always talks about in those articles. LOL

January 18th Food Diary

For breakfast i had a bowl of grape nuts and a glass of v8 banana strawberry juice. I made my coffee a little strong by mistake this morning so I only drank about half of it.

For lunch I had a piece of left over pizza, a yogurt and a small orange.

I finished up my eight cups of water in the afternoon.

I stopped at Runza on the way home to get the temperature Tuesday Runzas for supper again. Next week is the last week of temperature Tuesday, which is good and bad. Good because I don’t need to be eating Runza every week but bad because I love cheap Runzas, LOL. Anyway I had a Runza, a large order of onion rings and a large lemonade. After supper I had a bag of microwave popcorn while we watched some TV.

January 18th Exercise Diary

Today I went about twenty four minutes on the elliptical. I am not sure exactly how far and how long I went because the maintenance guy came in the middle of my work out to tighten a few bolts on the elliptical so I lost my data. I do know that I went more than twenty four minutes and did at least two miles. I did four speed intervals as well. It felt good to get back on the elliptical after four days off.

Januray 17th Weigh In

The scale still read ERR but after the weekend I had that didn't suprise me. Now back to working out on Tuesday and we can see how we do next week.

January 14th - January 17th Weekend Update

Well this weekend didn’t go so great. I started it off my going to a buffet at the casino on Friday night and eating way to much food (I did win seventy dollars though). Saturday daytime wasn’t too bad, we spent the day taking down all of the Christmas stuff so that involved going up and down the stairs a lot. I had half a frozen pizza and some chips for lunch and for dinner a club sandwich I got comped from the casino on Friday night. We had a Wedding Reception on Saturday night where I had water and a piece of cheese cake. Sunday I had two hotdogs and some cottage cheese for lunch and we ordered some pizza and bread sticks for supper. The big problem on Sunday was I ate half a bag of chips while I sat and watched football in the afternoon. Monday I had some leftover pizza for lunch. I slow cooked a chuck roast in barbeque sauce all day and we had that with some cottage cheese for supper. My problem came in the afternoon when I kept munching on little chocolates we had in the living room all day. Over all I wasn’t happy with how my weekend went food wise and I will be looking to improve it next weekend.

January 14th Food Diary

It is doughnut day so I had a glass of orange juice before I went to work and my morning coffee when I got to work. Then at morning break I had only one doughnut, (Second week in a row that I only had one doughnut, yeah me) and it was a cake doughnut.

For lunch I had to run some errand (Hence why there is no Exercise Dairy today) so I grabbed a Fiesta Chicken Salad and a large lemonade at Runza. It was my first time eating a salad at Runza and I was surprised how much I liked it. The reasons I got the salad was a little because I am trying to eat healthier but a lot more had to do with we are meeting my in-laws at the casino tonight and having the buffet there. I can now say that I will be getting the salad at Runza on a more regular basis because it was so good and surprisingly filling.

As of this afternoon I did not get my 8 cups of water in but we will see how much water I get down at the casino tonight.

On a side note there will be an extended weekend update on Tuesday because I have Monday off for Martin Luther King Day.

Incentive To Lose Weight

I was reading an article in Sports Illustrated about defensive linemen and their weight. It talked a little about how they have to be big to play their position but not too big. It is a constant battle for them to keep their weight down so they can play more effectively. It talked about how most teams have an ideal weight for their big men up front that is usually a little under what the big guys prefer to be at. What I found most interesting is that some teams are starting to put incentives in to the defensive linemen’s contracts for keeping their weight down. A defensive lineman for the Steelers has a clause in his contract that if he weighs a certain amount at the beginning of training camp, the beginning of the season and in mid-December he gets a one million dollar bonus. Now that is an incentive to lose weight and keep it off! Unfortunately the rest of us don’t get one million dollars for losing weight but we do have other incentives. For me it is small things like being more comfortable on a plane when I fly, being able to ride rides at an amusement park without the fear of not fitting in them and living a longer healthier life with my wonderful wife, but a million dollars sure would be a nice incentive as well.

January 13th Food Diary

Once again I had the old standby of grape nuts, orange juice and coffee with creamer for breakfast today. You think I would get tired of that but as of right now it is still hitting the spot.

For lunch I had a spinach salad with some salad topping on it and some leftover chicken from last night and raspberry vinaigrette dressing. I also had a yogurt cup and some water. It was really good but I meant to bring an orange or granola bar along so I hope it is enough to get me to supper tonight.

I finished off my 8 cups of water in the afternoon making it 4 days in a row.

Well I made it to supper and I only had a few Doritos before we ate. We made a creamy chicken noodle casserole for supper. It consisted of chopped up chicken breast, fate free egg noodles, mushrooms, light sour cream, mozzarella cheese and a family size can of cream of chicken soup. Mix it all together and threw it in the oven for about 30 minutes and it was delicious! I should have had only one bowl but I caved and had another bowl.

Even though I over ate at supper I only had a couple of bakers chocolates left over from Christmas the rest of the night while I watch basketball.

January 13th Exercise Diary

I did twenty two minutes on the elliptical today. I averaged 5.7mph and went a total distance of 2.0 miles. I did four one minute speed intervals during the work out. My legs don't feel as tired this week as they did last week. Granted I only did three days in the gym this week but I did snow blow three times as well. With the snow blowing I am going to call it a 4/4 workout week for me again, now to prepare for the next week.

January 12th Food Diary

Success! I got to eat breakfast, remembered my coffee and have my work out clothes here today! For breakfast I had my usual, orange juice and a bowl of grape nuts with skim milk. Then I remembered to grab my coffee, with a new pumpkin spice creamer in it, on my way out the door.

For lunch I had the last of the backed nacho chicken and rice from the last couple of nights. It was once again delicious; I might have to make that on the weekend every couple of weeks to take for lunch. I also had a blueberry pie yogurt that was really good.

I almost didn't finish my eight cups of water in the afternoon but I got the last of it down right before I left work for the day.

At supper we had chicken salad. My salad consisted of iceberg lettuce, cheese, some left over corn from Monday night, some salad topping, fat free Dorothy Lynch salad dressing, and some chopped up chicken breast. Over all it was pretty healthy and it tasted great!

After dinner I had a few more pieces from the chocolate box we had while I watch my Basketball Team play on TV.

January 12th Exercise Diary

I did twenty two minutes on the treadmill today. My main pace was 3.3mph and I went a total of 1.1 miles. I did six incline intervals, two at five percent incline then two at a ten percent incline and the final two back at the five percent incline. I had increased my speed from 3.2mph last week to 3.3mph this week. I hope to work my way up to 3.5mph in the coming weeks.

The Ideal BMI?

Since I don't know my exact weight do to being too fat for the scale I used a guesstimated number of 335 to try and figure my BMI the other day. I naturally came up on the high end of obese. That didn't really surprise me that much; my 3XL and 4XL shirts gave me that idea some time ago. So I started plugging in other weights with my height to see how much weight I would need to lose to get down to "Healthy". It said that I would need to be at 189lbs to be at the very max of healthy. 189lbs! I would look emaciated at 189lbs. I haven’t weighed that much since I was a freshman in high school! My current goal is to get down to 300lbs which would still make me obese but a healthier obese, LOL. My overall goal, and this is a long term goal, would be to get to 250lbs. That would still make me obese by the calculator. If I somehow got to 225lbs, which was my football playing weight when I was a junior in high school, I would be just inside the overweight category. So I guess what I am getting at is that I, and anyone out there reading this, need to get to a place where I feel comfortable and not the unrealistic goals the National Health boards have set for me.

January 11th Food Diary

If you saw my post yesterday morning then you know that I had now breakfast, juice or coffee in the morning. Stupid Snow!

For lunch I had a left over backed chicken from Sunday night with some of the rice from Monday night and a strawberry shortcake yogurt. The chicken and rice was really good and filling, I am excited that I have more of it for tomorrow’s lunch.

At break in the afternoon I finished my 8 cups of water.

For supper we once again took advantage of Temperature Tuesday at Runza. (Runza were three cents) I had a regular Runza, Large onion rings, onion ring dip and a large lemonade.

After supper we opened up a box of chocolates we got for the holidays and I had a couple of them.

January 11th Exercies Diary

Today I did a fair amount of exercising. If you read my earlier post you know that I did some unexpected snow blowing before work that took about fifteen to twenty minutes. Then this afternoon I did the elliptical for twenty two minutes. I did three intervals of one minute and 2 intervals of thirty seconds at over 6.0mph. I ended up going a total of 2.0 miles and I averaged 5.5mph. I was surprised by my mileage and pace but I guess doing the extra 2 minutes and the longer intervals really added up.

Breakfast, The Most Important Meal of The Day

I know that breakfast is very important if you are trying to lose weight. It kick starts your metabolism so you are burring fat earlier then if you waited to eat until lunch. I did a great job last week eating breakfast every day and I found it gave me more energy during the day as well. That is why I am so mad at the wind and snow today. I went bed with the comforting knowledge that the snow was done falling but I didn’t know the stupid wind was going to come up and blow the snow around as much as it did. I woke up this morning to get ready for work and was greeted by a two and a half foot drift in the middle of the driveway thanks to the wind. So instead of eating breakfast this morning I spent the time snow blowing the drive way (for the third time in twenty five hours). Then to top it all off as I was rushing out the door trying to get to work on time I left me cup of coffee sitting on the counter. I guess on the bright side I remembered my work out clothes so I can go hit the elliptical over lunch today.

January 10th Food Dairy

I woke up early to clear snow this morning but I still got in a bowl of grape nuts with skim milk, a glass of orange juice and a cup of coffee with creamer in it.

For break all I had was a cup of water.

At lunch I had an enchilada Bake microwaveable meal, a string cheese, a cutie orange and a cup of yogurt. I also finished my eight cups of water at lunch as well.

We made chicken burrito bowls for supper. A chicken burrito bowl is a bed of rice with black beans, taco seasoned diced chicken, salsa, sour cream, cheese and a little extra taco sauce for spice. I went a little over board and had a portion that was bigger then I needed. Portions are and always have been something I need to work on.

Finally for desert we had some jello.

January 10th Exercise Diary

I forgot my work out clothes at home this morning so i feel a little lazy not working out over lunch today. On the bright side it snowed a bunch here so I spent 30 minutes snow blowing the sidewalks and driveway this morning and I will have to do it again when I get home. So at least I am not being completely lazy.

January 7th-9th Weekend Update

On Friday night we went out to Shogun, a Japanese Steak House, with my family to celebrate my sister and brother in-laws birthdays. For starters I had a small salad, soup, fried rice, fried vegetable (carrots, brocoli, onion and zucchini) and for my main dish I had the scallops, witch where heavenly. I also caught 2two of the three shrimp the cook flipped to me. It was a great meal but judging by all the butter he used not the healthiest. LOL

On Saturday we spent the day in Omaha to spend the day with some friends of ours. We met them for lunch at a Petrow's and I had the Roast Beef Casserole special. It was great and probably not terrible for me except for the large chocolate malt I had with it. (I'm a sucker for a good malt) Then back at their house I munched on Cheetos and cookies in the afternoon. For supper I had three hotdogs and a hamburger. I should have backed off on a hot dog but they were Nathan's hotdogs so I didn't. I didn't get close to my eight cups of water in on Saturday but I also didn't drink any pop, we had orange fruit punch and a few beers instead. I know I had malts, beers and sugary drinks but my problem is once I start drink pop I can't stop so the longer I can stay 100% away from it the better.

While we were in Omaha we stoped at Nebraska Furniture Mart and bought a Recumbent Bike so we can exercise at home more. They were out of stock so it will be at least a month before we get it but we are very excited about it.

On Sunday we ran to the store and grabbed some McDonalds on the way back home. I was pretty happy with my self here. I ended up having a McDouble, ten McChicken Nuggets and a large fry. (There was a time not so long ago I would have had tw or three McDoubles instead of just one.

In the afternoon broke down and had a bag of popcorn. but I also got down a few glasses of water.

Sunday evening we made backed chicken with a nacho sauce on it. I had a chicken breast and a half. We also made a bag of Uncle Ben's Spanish rice. Then I didn't have another thing to eat all night. (Gold Star for Sunday Night)

First Weekend Test

This is the first weekend since I decided to try and live a healthier life. It is a test for me because I am a bored eater. I have always been a person that if I have nothing else to do or some spare time to kill I like to eat. It is kind of like a hobby, a terrible hobby, but I have enjoyed it a lot over the years. I can't count the number times I parked on the couch on a Saturday or Sunday afternoon and ate all afternoon while I watched TV. Lucky for me I was out of the house with friends all day on Saturday but Sunday I have been home all day. All I have eaten so far is a bag of microwave popcorn and some peppermint sticks. I have done a good job of keeping my self busy with things most of the day so I didn't get to bored. I think I am going to call today a success and go start getting food for supper ready.

Thanks For The Comments!

I got a few comments this week on the blog! That is very exciting I didn't really think anyone would actually read this. Thanks for reading and I hope I keep it interesting enough that you come back again soon.

January 9th Weigh In

Well I got on the scale this morning for the first time in I don't know how long and the results were as expected. The scale read "Err." witch means I am still to fat for the scale to weigh me. I know the scale maxs out at 330 so if I can just get the thing to tell me how much I weigh that will be my first accomplishment in this little experiment.

January 7th Food Diary

Today all I had before work was a cup of coffee with creamer in it.

It was doughnut Friday so I had a chocolate frosted cinnamon roll and a glass of water at break this morning.

I had a light microwave meatloaf and mashed potatoes meal for lunch with a string cheese, cutie orange, and pineapple yogurt. The pineapple yogurt was great and so was the meatloaf. The meatloaf made me want to make meatloaf for supper sometime and then I could have the leftovers at lunch.

In the afternoon I finished my 8 cups of water and broke down and had a cookie that was in the break room at break.

You may notice there is no dinner recap here. Friday night dinners and everything from the weekend will be included in the weekend recap on Sunday Night or Monday Morning.

January 7th Exercise Diary

Today I walked on the treadmill for 20 minutes again. I stated out at a speed of 2.0mph and worked my way up to 3.2mph with a two minute warm up. I only went with 3.2 today because my body felt a little fatigued from all the exercise it isn't use to yet. I did inclined intervals again today. The first and last ones were for thirty seconds at a five degree incline, the second and forth ones were for one minute at a five degree incline and the third was for thirty seconds at a ten degree incline. This was my first week exercising and I got all four days in like I wanted to. Now for a few days off then keeping this exercise thing up again next week!

First Doughnut Friday Test

I am on the doughnut Friday list at work so every Friday someone on the list brings in doughnuts for everyone else on the list. This will be my first test of how much I want to lose weight. I usually eat two doughnuts every morning break and sometimes one in the afternoon. Today (and in the future) I am aiming to have only one doughnut in the morning and none in the afternoon. Here is crossing my fingers to see how I do.

January 6th Food Diary

Once again I had my bowl of grape nuts followed by a glass of OJ and a cup of coffee (which I made a little strong today LOL) with creamer in it.

During the morning I had three little Christmas cookies and a glass of water.

For lunch I had a Clementine orange (It is just a tiny orange), a string cheese, a yogurt and a Salisbury steak and mashed potatoes (my second favorite behind the enchilada bake) light microwave meal. I also drank half of my 64oz. water bottle.

Finally for supper I had a bowl of chicken raviolis with cheese on it, and two bowls of chips and salsa. Then to take care of my sweet tooth I had two fudge stripe cookies.

January 6th Exercise Diary

I walked on the treadmill for twenty minutes today. I averaged a little over 3mph and walked a total of 1.1 miles. I did four incline intervals of five degrees for thirty seconds each and did one incline interval of ten degrees for thirty seconds. I did a two minute warm up to get to 3.5mph and a two minute cool down to 2mph.

Feel the Pain

I have never used an elliptical before so I don't know exactly what Parts of the body it works the hardest. I can tell you after using one for two days that the front of my thighs are where i can feel the elliptical the most. It isn't crippling or anything like that but there is some discomfort when I go to stand up and sit down or when I am going up and down the stairs. But all in all this is a good thing and hopefully after another week I won’t feel that anymore.

January 5th Food Diary

I started off the day with a bowl of grape nuts and skim milk. I washed them down with a glass of orange juice and then a cup of coffee with some creamer in it.

At break I had 3 sugar cookies again and a glass of water.

For lunch I had a leftover baked chicken breast from Sunday night, a yogurt, a string cheese and a Christmas tree cake.

In the afternoon I finished off my 8 glasses of water for the day.

Then at home I had two enchiladas, a glass of chocolate milk, a chocolate chip cookie and a fudge stripe cookie
.

January 5th Exercise Diary

I did 20 minutes on the elliptical again today. That makes it two days in a row now. I once again kept a good pace of over 4.0mph the entire time with 3 intervals of 30 seconds at over 6.0mph. This time I averaged 5.3mph and went a total distance of 1.7 miles.

Fat Free Coffee Creamer?

I thought that I had gotten Fat Free French Vanilla coffee creamer at the store on Monday but I was wrong. I noticed this morning when I was getting it out of the fridge that I had in fact gotten regular coffee creamer. So I guess I lied to you guys yesterday when I called it fat free. But it still tastes good and it is a lot better than having a can/bottle of pop in the morning isn't it?

January 4th Food Diary

I had a bowl of grape nuts and glass of orange juice for breakfast and then a cup of coffee with no fat creamer on the way to work.

At my morning break I had 3 or 4 small Christmas sugar cookies.

At lunch I had a string cheese stick, a cup of fat free yogurt, a Christmas tree cake and a low fat microwave dinner (Enchilada Bake).

In the afternoon I finished my 64oz. water bottle getting my 8 cups of water in for the day.

For supper I had a cheese Runza, large onion ring, onion ring dip and a large lemonade.

January 4th Exercise Diary

I was on the elliptical for 20 minutes. I keep a good pace of over 4.0mph the entire time. I also did three 30 second intervals where I did greater than 6.0mph for the full 30 seconds. I went a total of 1.6 miles and had an average speed of 5.0mph.

Didn't Go Well

Well as you may be able to see things didn't go well after that first post. I am going to try this again since it is a new year and I am hoping to keep it going for a entire year this time. My starting goals are to try and eat better and exercise at least 4 times a week and then see where we go from there. So wish me luck and here we go!