Cabbage Soup

This soup is great for weight loss. My wife has been eating this for suppers for the past few months and she has lost over 20 pounds. It is a very filling soup and can also provide a "cleanse" to the digestive system (your results may vary). Even if you don't use this soup to lose weight, it is very good and makes a great comfort meal. This goes well with Naan Bread or a roll. You can also add crumbled sausage (which defeats the weight-loss portion), tofu, or any other type of veggie you may wish to add. Be warned, this recipe makes a HUGE portion, so you will need a large stockpot or two.  

Ingredients for Cabbage Soup

 What you need:

• 1 Large head of cabbage (shredded) (or 2 small heads of different colors)
• 8 Carrots (peeled and diced) 
• 4 Onions (diced) 

Losing Those Last Thirty Pounds: Part-Deux

courtesy of... snegidhi.com
So, how am I going to do this reboot? Well, let me break it down into groups:
Exercise... I have been going full-tilt with exercising for just about four years now (minus taking a break for one week after every 6-8 weeks) and I think I'm going to give myself a rest. During those four years, I have been doing strength training, cardio (walking, Nordic Track, and bike riding), and most recently, yoga and Pilates. As a side note, I have to say that I really like yoga and Pilates. I never thought I could get a good workout from them, but that was until i tried doing it.

Anyway, I'm going to take a few weeks off from exercising and give my body a chance to heal and forget the rigors of daily exercise. My reasoning behind doing this being, that when you do an exercise routine repeatedly, your body will "remember" how many calories it needs to burn in order to get through that routine. Now, if I stop exercising for a few weeks, my body should forget and thus burn more calories and hopefully "reboot".

Starting back up:
My main form of exercise is the Total Gym. Now, if you are not familiar with this piece of equipment, it uses your own body weight as the resistance. You lay on a bench, which you can adjust downwards to produce less resistance or you can adjust it upwards to produce greater resistance. For example, when I started using the Total Gym just over three years ago, I was 296 pounds. That's how much weight I was using to pull myself up. Now, I weigh 220...you can see the difference right there. There's just a little over 70 pounds of difference and I wonder why I'm not seeing any results.

Yep, I'm slow :) SO, I'm going to invest in some weights and attach them to my Total Gym. They have provided a weight bar on the base of the bench, so I can attach the weights there. I think I'll add between 50-70 pounds of weights and see how that goes. This means that I'll have to move the bench down to one of its lowest settings, but that's alright. It'll be just like starting over, which in effect, I'm doing.
Nutrition:
This happens to be my weakest point. Unfortunately, it also happens to be the foundation to any fitness program. I have a bad habit of skipping meals and sometimes just eating popcorn. If you try and starve yourself, your body will go into what's known as "starvation mode" and whenever you do happen to eat, your body will immediately convert those calories to fat, which kinda defeats your entire purpose. So, learn from my mistakes and don't do this. Ideally, you should strive to have 4-5 smaller meals throughout the day.

Control your portion size. Being on a diet doesn't mean that you can't have some of your favorite foods. It just means that you need to control how much of them you eat.

Just now, I mentioned the dreaded Die with a T word. I am really trying to get away from using that word and working toward a lifestyle change. For me to lose this weight and keep it off, I'm going to have to change my lifestyle. Just going on a diet will not cut it. Why? Because after I lose the weight and go off the diet, I'll gain the weight back and the cycle will begin again.

Well, enough of my yammering. Although this is done mainly for my benefit and to have a "chronicle" of this particular roadblock, I hope that it may help someone out there that might be going through the same thing.

Just remember, no matter how you may be feeling now, you are not alone in this. Keep looking forward, because looking back is not an option.

First in series... Losing Those Last Thirty Pounds: part-1

Losing Those Last Thirty Pounds: Part-One

Photo courtesy of... funnyfailpictures.com
Losing those last 20 or so pounds can be an aggravating process. It can seem like it takes longer to lose those last few pounds then it did to lose those first 30-plus pounds. You know what, it bites!
I've been trying to lose my last 30 pounds for over a year now and guess what? I still have 30 pounds left to lose. What's going on?? What am I doing wrong? I've been asking myself these questions for the last few weeks now and I MIGHT have an answer. I say might, because since I don't have a personal trainer and I don't have a fitness guru to talk to, I have to rely on my own instincts and gut feelings. So, what am I going to do?
Well, before I get into that, let me go back in time and tell you where I started (warning: dream sequence)...

The Doctor, Weight-Loss, and Pizza

Today, since I haven't done it in a while, I'm going to provide a little update on the old weight-loss front. I had to go to the doctor today for my annual exam and the first thing they have me do is step on the scale. Much to my surprise, it said that I weighed 207.5 lbs, down from the 236.4 lbs I weighed last year (This means, since I started in August of 2008, I've lost a total of 91 lbs of fat). I say, "much to my surprise," because the scale I have at home says I weigh-in at 217 lbs. Quite a little discrepancy, if you ask me. If you are at familiar with this site, you will know that I am engaged in a constant battle with this scale. It is an older digital model that should have been retired years ago, but since that would mean having to go to the store to purchase a new one (for me, stepping into a store has the similar effect as a vampire stepping into sunlight- the real vampires, not those Twilight, sparkly ones), I just deal with the inaccuracies.

Anyway, I thought that was pretty good news, so I went and celebrated by eating an entire Chicago Connection pizza myself, thus gaining back the ten pounds I thought I weighed. Okay....the thought did actually cross my mind for a moment, but that would not be a very intelligent thing for me to do so, surprisingly, I refrained from my desires and had a yogurt instead. Trust me on this, it's NOT the same!

Since I'm on the subject of pizza, I have decided that I would like to start making my own. I understand that there is something like a pizza stone involved in this operation, so I need to look into getting something like that or finding a cheap alternative. Also, since I will be making my own crusts, I think that I may need to make-up another batch of sourdough starter (notice the shameless plug), so that I can use that just for my pizza crusts.

Now, what about the sauce. I would prefer to just go with the traditional tomato sauce, especially since we have quarts of the stuff in our freezer (canned them myself from our very own tomatoes). Unfortunately, my rather picky daughters don't like tomato sauce, so I'll have to come-up with a white sauce; I'm thinking a nice garlic/Parmesan sauce would be fit the bill.

As for the toppings, got to have: salami, pepperoni, garlic (minced), cheese, mushrooms, cheese, maybe some onions and peppers, cheese, olives, and cheese.

You know, it's pretty pathetic when I start by discussing my weight loss and I end-up talking about pizza. Gee, I wonder what's on my mind?

Beginning Your Fitness Routine

I haven't written anything about weight loss or fitness lately and seeing as the theme of this site happens to revolve around that, I figure that it's time I jump back on that horse. I know that the last thing anyone wants to think about during this time of year is fitness, but seeing as the New Year is just around the corner and along with it, all those pesky resolutions, I'm going to start at the beginning. Yup, let's take some measurements...

Before you start a weight loss regime, you may want to take a few moments and do a few things. The first and most obvious is to step on the scale and weigh yourself, although that’s probably how you ended-up here in the first place. Next, take a tape measure and measure your legs, hips, waist, (this is the area just above your belly button), chest, arms, and your neck. Why do I need to measure my legs and neck? Well, when you begin to lose fat, the first places where you will see a decrease in size will be the extremities (your legs and arms). Contrary to popular belief, and wishful thinking, the abdominal area is the last place where you will lose the inches.

Now that we have the baseline measurements, I need to talk to you about the frequency of your re-measures. I would suggest NOT weighing yourself everyday. Do all your measurements on a weekly basis. This way you can escape the worst of your normal body fluctuations and not become a prisoner of your scale. To give you an example, when I first started my program, I would weight myself every single day. One day I would have lost a pound or two and I would be ecstatic. The next day I would gain a pound and be depressed. This was especially true after finishing an especially difficult workout; I would even contemplate giving up. Please don’t fall into this trap. Your weight will naturally vary throughout the day, depending on water gain or loss, food intake, etc.

As you progress, you should notice a fairly steady loss of weight for the first 6-8 weeks (in my case it was a total 10 pounds). After this period of time, the amount of your weight loss will become less, usually around 1-2 pounds per week. As you progress in your exercise program and begin to lose weight, your body will have less mass to move, thus it will require fewer calories to burn in order to complete your workout. So, in order to continue to burn the same amount of calories, you will have to work harder (I know, bad news). Also, your body will become adapted to your exercise routine, so you will also have to vary your routine (to see more tips on this, please read my article on Overcoming a Weight Loss Plateau).

To lose weight in a healthy manner is a gradual process. You didn’t gain it overnight, although it certainly seems like it, so don’t expect to lose it overnight. Make your exercise routine a part of your new lifestyle, not a supplement to a diet.

Good luck to you and if I can help in any way, please leave a comment and I’ll get back to you.


Here's a handy chart for your measurements... exercise.about.com

Exercise or Yardwork

When I started my retaining wall project last month (yes, shameless promotion), I was currently in the habit of exercising 5-6 times per week. I was determined to maintain that schedule throughout the construction process, because I knew that I would feel guilty for not working out. Well, that lasted for all of three days. The first two days went fairly well; I exercised and than I went and spent three hours weeding the berm. However, on the third day, I began digging the trenches; this did not go so well. I was so exhausted from the exercising and the digging, that I all but collapsed when I was finished for the day. I discovered right then and there, that the yard work I was doing was providing me with more than enough exercise, thank you very much.

You see, I had it engraved in my mind that if I skipped a day of exercise, I would be sabotaging my whole fitness routine. Strange, I know, but that's what my mind-set was. Looking back on everything, I have come to realize that it is not just the fact that I am setting aside a certain amount of time each day to expend energy, it is the fact that I am actually expending energy. Whether in the form of a structured exercise routine or in the way of yard work: it is the fact that I am actually doing something physical.

Now, you may be asking what all this has to do with the title of this article? Well, simply put: it doesn't matter whether you do your usual exercise routine or do yard work. It matters that you get out there and do some sort of physical activity. So, put the guilt away and go get that yard (or mine) in shape.

Once Again in the Weight Loss Plateau

Well, as I sit here writing this, I am once again in the throes of a weight loss plateau. I have been at the same weight for roughly two months now, so I feel it is time to mix things up a bit. Since the end of January, I have been exercising 5 days a week without fail. During the previous three weeks, I have increased my workouts to seven days a week; four days of strength training and three days of the dreaded Nordic Track.

Since I am still at 216 pounds, I feel that the only way to break this plateau, is to take a break from exercising. I bet it sounds really strange to say, that if I stop exercising for a week, I will begin to lose weight again? But, it does seem to work. You see, as you tally-forth on your exercise and diet regime, your body does not know what to expect, so it will expend the maximum amount of calories to make sure you have the energy you need. As you continue with the exercises, your body will begin to remember how many calories to expend in order to get you through the routine. You will eventually reach a point where, if you do not alter your exercises, your body will know exactly how many calories to burn. When this occurs, you will not be burning any additional calories and your weight will remain the same.

What you need to do, is to "trick" your body. You see, right now my body is expecting me to workout on my Total Gym or Nordic Track and it knows exactly how many calories to expend, to get me through my exercises. So, I need to break my routine and to do that, I'm not going to be exercising this week. I have got to say that it feels really strange not exercising. It is such an ingrained routine that it is going to be difficult not to do it.

If you read back what I just said, it may help to illustrate my point..."it is such an ingrained routine," with the keyword being: routine. In my mind, I am expecting to exercise today; if my mind expects me to exercise, what do you think my body is expecting?

You may be asking yourself, if this really works or not. Well, I have been at this for just shy of two years and I run into these things just about every six to eight weeks. When I take that well-deserved break and resume the following week, I begin to see the weight beginning to come off, once again. So yes, it does work. I have added a few things you might want to try to break your plateau...

• Take a week off


• Come up with new exercises or a different way of doing the old ones


• Change-up the routine. Don't do it the same way each day


• Do both strength training and cardio

Good Luck and let me know if I can be of any assistance.

I Want a Personal Trainer

Since I am short on time and hair (yes, still pulling-out my hair over the end of school), here is an article originally published last May. Hope you enjoy it.

I’m just sitting here trying to come up with a good excuse to not exercise. I keep telling myself that my muscles need to recover from yesterday. They really do. Then I tell myself that if I do exercise, I’ll feel better for the rest of the day. What should I do?

Actually what I am trying to do is "guilt" myself into doing something that I really don’t feel like doing. I go through this everyday and I must say I am getting tired of it. From day to day, the excuses become lamer and lamer. What I really need is some huge Terminator-type personal trainer to get me motivated. It would be a combination of fear and envy. Fear, that he would actually follow through with his threats and envy, that I really would like to look like him.

The only problem is, I don’t have the $300 an hour I would need to hire Arnold. That’s where I kind of envy these Hollywood types. Why? Because they have the money to hire these people who not only motivate them, but show them the right exercises to do. Me, I have the pamphlet that came with my Total Gym and my own ability to guilt myself into doing it.

The Last Thirty Pounds

As I come within the final 30 pounds of my weight goal, I have noticed that things have started to happen very slowly. My weight has basically stalled at 215 lbs and my fat loss seems to have slowed to a veritable crawl. Now, with regards to the actual pounds lost I am not that concerned, because I am continuing with my strength training routine. I figure that if I gain a pound or two or, if I happen to remain the same weight, I can just chalk it up to building muscle. However, when it comes to not seeing any results in the fat loss department, that is when I start to have concerns.

As I have stated before, when you first begin to lose weight, the fat will first start to disappear from your legs, arms, back, neck, buttocks, and finally your midsection. This is why it is important to take baseline measurements before you begin your diet, because your initial fat loss may not be that noticeable. With that being said, I have noticed that the fat around most of my body, with the noticeable exception of the old tummy, has mainly disappeared. Yes, I have lost a tremendous amount from my midsection, but it seems that these last thirty pounds are fighting like crazy to remain.

I figured that I had lost most of the fat from around my extremities, but over these past few months, I seem to have been mistaken. Just recently, I have noticed that the veins in my arms and legs are beginning to show. I never really paid much attention before, simply because I had never seen them before. But, there they are and this can only mean one thing: my body is still in the process of rendering my entire body of the fat I have so carefully cultivated over many years. It seems like my belly fat, acting like an unwanted guest, seems unwilling to leave.

I have observed, throughout this entire process, that even though we do not lose fat the way we would like (belly first), we do lose it. It is a much more gradual and systematic way and although it seems like it takes forever, try not to lose hope. You will discover that all your hard work and dedication is paying off. You will notice that the fat is disappearing, just not where you would like it. The main point is: I am still losing the fat and I should stop complaining about where it is being taken from.

My Weight Loss Reward

One of the great things about losing weight is the fact that your clothes begin to become too large. I’ve noticed that over the past year, a lot of my clothes no longer seem to fit me. The big sweatshirts that I constantly wear around the house have gone from barely fitting me, to something akin to wearing a tent. I love this feeling and thoroughly enjoy going into my closet and grabbing clothes that I used to be too small for me, but now fit like a glove.

The one part of this fantastic adventure that never even occurred to me was the fact that, even though my clothes have become too big for me, my underwear have also outgrown their usefulness. I bet you didn’t see that one coming, did you? If you sit down and think about it, you have to admit that it is not the first thing that comes to mind when bragging to your friends about your weight loss. Yes, you can brag about the new shirts you have bought or that great new pair of pants that you can finally fit into, but when it comes to the "underwear" topic, mums the word.

As I sit and write this, I am trying to decide whether to splurge and purchase a pair that sports a designer label or should I just continue to purchase the usual store brand. I have to admit that as I was surfing the Internet (yes, I have way too much time on my hands, sometimes), I came across a pair of diesel underwear, (I know, it sounds like underwear for truckers, but it is actually a very famous brand name) that not only looked great, but the company offers free shipping, as well. Now, you are probably wondering why I’m making such a big deal about all this and, to be honest, you are correct. It comes down to a simple matter of economics: buy five pairs of store brand underwear or buy one pair of a designer brand. The answer seems simple, but the reasoning behind the decision is a bit more convoluted.


As I draw near to my weight loss goal of 180 pounds, I have been trying to think of something to reward myself. After all, it has been almost two years since I began my diet and exercise routine and I am nearing a weight I have not seen in over twenty years. It seems that there should be something I could do to reward myself for all of my hard work. I have already planned to purchase and consume a Chicago Connection pizza when I reach 200 pounds. Yes, I know it doesn’t make much sense to eat a pizza to celebrate losing weight, but I have not had one of their pizzas, or any pizzas for that matter, in over 16 months. This being said, I feel it is my duty to stimulate the economy and do my part to provide jobs for those workers at the pizza place.

However, once I do reach my target weight, stuffing my face as a reward all the time, will put me right back to where I started and I really don’t want to go there again. Therefore, I think that I might reward myself in a more tangible fashion by splurging on a set of new underwear that not only looks good, but also will serve as a reminder of how far I have actually come. Certainly there are other ways to reward myself, but for now, this seems the most economical and fat-free way of doing so.

Weight Loss Progress Report

I am sorry to say that my last weight loss progress report to all of you was back in July. The reason for this is simple: I hit a mean, nasty, and ornery weight loss plateau, that I just couldn't seem to shake. Finally however, I was able to overcome it and get back on track once again. My goal weight is 190 lbs. so, I seem to be getting nearer yet, somehow it seems farther away than ever. I know you’re busy so, here are the results.

• Beginning weight on 6 August 2007: 298 pounds (as confirmed by my doctor)


• Beginning hip measurement:48 inches


• Beginning waist measurement: 56 inches




• Weight on 27 July 2008: 232 lbs.


• Hip measurement: 39 inches


• Waist measurement: 44 inches




• Weight on 25 March 2009: 215 lbs.


• Hip Measurement: 38 inches


• Waist measurement: 41 _3/4 inches


• Total weight loss: 83 lbs.

I really don't see myself losing any more than maybe one or two more inches around my hips, but I do know that I have at least another five or six inches or more, that I can lose around my waist. As for any fat on my legs, arms, or back, that has been pretty much eliminated and replaced with muscle. Once I ever reach the 200 lb. mark, I am going to break down and reward myself with a Chicago Connection Pizza. After that, it will be back to work.

Fitness Tips: The Exercise Excuse

How many times have you been thinking about starting an exercise regime, but have come up with a variety of excuses as to why you shouldn’t. Some of my own favorites are: I’ll wait until I can afford some new workout clothes; I need a treadmill before I can workout; I don’t have an iPod, and my personal favorite……I’ll wait until I lose some weight first.

Now, I personally have used each of these at one time or another and I must say, I can make it sound convincing. After I convince myself that I need to wait, I promptly forget about the excuse I used and continue on the same way. A couple of months later, when I again deign to see myself in the mirror, the cycle starts all over again.

The saying, “Why put off for tomorrow what you can do today,” comes to mind. We can always find a valid excuse for putting something off; however, what we need to do is to find a valid excuse for actually doing it. We need to stop making excuses and start doing something. We don’t need new clothes to sweat in. We don’t need a treadmill when there is a perfectly good sidewalk outside. We don’t need an iPod to keep us company for 20 minutes, try silence and good old fashioned imagination. Once we put the excuses aside, we can begin to put the pounds aside.

Dial M for Muscle

As you gaze down upon the Scale of Doom, you notice that it has not moved a bit in fact, you may have gained a few extra pounds. You have been very faithful in fitness routine, so what’s the problem? Is this another weight loss plateau? If you are less than six weeks into your routine, chances are it’s something else. Yet, for those who do not know, it can be every bit as sinister as a plateau. It goes by many names, but I like to call it…Muscle Mass or MM, for short. That’s right, with all that exercising, you are actually toning and building muscle while you are losing fat. Since you are gaining muscle weight, that addition will show up on the scale. This is something that I discovered by accident.

I had been working-out on a regular basis and being faithful to my diet, but the weight was just not coming off. When I went to take my weekly measurements, I noticed that my waist size had actually decreased. How can I lose inches, but not lose weight? This is where MM comes in. I was so obsessed with the Scale of Doom, that I never even noticed that I was building muscle. It was a pleasant shock when I actually looked at myself in the mirror and noticed muscle where none had before existed.

So, next time you step upon the scale and notice no change, just remember that you're not only losing the fat, but you're gaining muscle.

How I Lost my Weight

In my previous article on Overcoming a Weight Loss Plateau, you would have noticed that I lost a great deal of weight in only the first three months. That was not a typo, I actually lost just over 40 pounds in that amount of time. The big question is, how did I do it? Well, I will share with you what I did.

For a few months prior to going on my diet, I was in the habit of consuming just over 4,000 calories a day. Yup, that's right: 4,000; with just about 1,500 coming in the form of a Big bowl of ice cream, late at night. So, if it takes 3,500 calories to make a pound of fat, you can see that I was gaining just over a pound a day. I know, not too bright, but I didn't know any better back then. So, when I started my diet I needed to amend my eating ways, which I did in a drastic fashion. If my doctor knew what I was doing, he probably would have had a fit.

I began by exercising about 15 minutes a day and gradually increased that time to just over an hour. I drank tons of water and I also cut my caloric intake from the previous 4,000 calories a day to just under 1,000. Regarding the cut in caloric intake, I need to emphasize this: DO NOT ATTEMPT TO DO THIS. This is extremely dangerous! I did this because I was desperate and did not know any better. I was lucky that I didn't end up in the hospital, or worse. When you go on a diet, you need to make sure you reduce your caloric intake, but in a safe and reasonable manner. You need to make sure that you eat less, but also eat healthy foods.

Since then, I have started eating more (about 2,000 calories a day) and I also decreased my exercise time to a more manageable 30-40 minutes a day. Since February 2008, I have only lost 25 pounds of fat, but I am doing so in a safer manner. Although that does not seem like a great deal, I have been consistently losing inches and gaining muscle mass. If it wasn't for me keeping track of my measurements, I would truly have been depressed. Thus, another good example to follow: before you begin your diet, please take baseline measurements of your legs, arms, waist, and hips. That way, even if you are not losing pounds, you can check to make sure you are losing those nasty inches.

Overcoming A Weight Loss Plateau

This originally ran in April of 2008...

In August, 2007, I began my weight loss program. I weighed 296 pounds of pure, unadulterated fat (can we say Jabba the Hutt??). In November, I weighed 254 pounds, with 15 of that in muscle. In December...254lbs. In January....254lbs. In February....254lbs. What is going on here!!!! I am killing myself with these exercises and this diet, but I'm still at the same weight!!! I'm losing inches, but I'm not losing pounds. I am no longer a fitness nut. I QUIT!!!!!

Has this ever happened to you? Well, this is what happened to me and no, I did not quit. Instead, I did some research, because I knew something was going on; I just didn't know what it was. Somewhere out there someone HAD to have gone through this same thing. The first question was to know what it was called. So, I went "college" on myself and picked the word Plateau. I was right. The attached article goes into more detail, but I'll give you the nuts and bolts of it right now.

Here's what happened: When I started to exercise, I naturally weighed a lot more, so there was more mass to move, thus more calories to burn. As I continued to lose the weight, my body had less mass to move, thus less calories were burned. My body eventually became used to my exercise routine and knew how many calories to burn for the workout. You see, I did not alter my workout; I did the same thing every day. Thus, my body did not have to extend itself. Here's an example of what I am talking about: Let's say you start jogging. The first day you huff and puff and eventually you reach the 1 mile goal. Fast-forward 2 weeks. Do you still huff and puff after 1 mile?? Probably not. Your body has gotten used to the run and has adapted to it. Now, do you just stop after running that 1 mile, or do you stretch it to 2 miles? My guess is that you will stretch it. The same scenario is applicable to strength training. You need to continue to challenge your body in order to continue to lose the weight.

What I needed to do is to trick my body. Give it the unexpected. So, I took a week off and researched different ways of doing my exercises. I needed to maintain the exercise routine, but not the routine exercises.

After the week off, I began again. However, this time I did different exercises and in a different order. I don't do them in the same way every day, like I used to. I mix it up. This way my body does not know what to expect. It can't get lulled into a routine. It doesn't know how much energy it will need to complete the exercise routine.

Guess what?? IT WORKS!!! The pounds are once again starting to come off. I am also a lot happier, because each day my workout is different. I like that.

In a nutshell, here is what I did:

• Take a week off
• Come up with new exercises or a different way of doing the old ones
• Change-up the routine. Don't do it the same way each day.
• Do both strength training and cardio

webmd.com

Tom's Revenge, Losing that Holiday Weight

As you know the holidays are over and the turkey and all his friends have come home to roost...in our hips. Yes, it's Tom's (the turkey) final revenge and now something needs to be done about it. As our minds all turn towards losing the weight we have gained over the past few months, there are a few things to consider. Firstly, we must understand that we didn't put this weight on overnight, so we can't lose it overnight. What am I saying is: stay away from those lose-10-pounds-in-two-weeks pills. If you see one of those advertisements, just put the mouse down and move slowly away from the computer. The only thing you will lose from using those pills will be water and your hard-earned cash. Yup, you may lose weight, but it will only be water-weight, and you can lose that on your own.

You may also want to be think carefully about those terrific one-year membership offers by gyms. Yes, they are great values, but unless you are totally committed to working-out on a long-term basis for an entire year, you may end up losing money in the long run. If you want and can afford to go to a gym, PLEASE GO; However, if you are unsure whether or not you you will stick with it, then I would try and get a monthly rate to start, just in case you do happen to lose interest.

If I could afford it, I would be in a gym everyday. They have the equipment and the staff to help you lose the weight and tone and build your muscles in a safe and balanced way. As it is, I am on my own and must learn the hard way (violins playing in the background). All I am saying is, please be careful, the weight-loss vultures are out in force this time of year and are waiting to descend upon you. Don't give them that chance.

A New Year's Resolution

Well, a new year is fast approaching and with it comes the dreaded New Year's Resolutions. I for one, have never really opted-in for this tradition, but I think that this year I may make an exception. Why? The simple fact is I need something to motivate me to climb on that dastardly NordicTrack and actually use the thing for something besides a storage rack.

As you may know, I have discussed this particular aversion before, but I feel that I need to re-address this issue once again. I am the sort of person who does not like doing the same thing over and over again. I like diversity in my workout routine, which sort of flies in the face of using treadmills or ski machines, but I know that cardio is an integral part of any exercise program. When I visited the doctor last month, he mentioned the same thing: don't neglect the cardio portion of your workouts.

So, why not just get off my rear and go for a walk? Walking is an excellent way to keep in shape and lose weight, but I am just not interested in doing it. I used to love jogging, but I get shin splints so I can't do that, either. This kind of puts me in a quandary, what should I do? I really enjoy my Total Gym, but I can no longer neglect that other thing. So, I feel that the best way to ensure I actually use it, will be to make a New Year's Resolution.

So, my New Year's Resolution is to use that thing at least twice a week (unless I have to shovel snow, that can count as my cardio workout). There, I've done it. Now, millions of people, well maybe four or five, will read this and hold me accountable. I do have one question, though: how long are these resolution things supposed to last?

Food Commercials and Diets

Ever notice that when you are on a diet, all the commercials are about food? I'm sitting here writing this and they are showing a Pizza Hut commercial and guess what, I'm drooling. I mean, I don't even like Pizza Hut. Their pizza tastes like cardboard with a real bad sauce. Now, if you want a real good pizza, you need to try Chicago Connection. They are a local outfit, but their pizza is out of this world. I get salami, pepperoni, mushrooms, garlic (they sprinkle fresh minced garlic over the entire pizza), and extra cheese. This thing comes uncut and piping hot. After you slice the pizza and place a slice on your plate, your plate is just covered in grease (just the way I like it), which could explain one reason I am on this diet in the first place.

If that is not enough, I try and escape to the relative safety of the Internet and visit my favorite sites. While dropping, I am again accosted with lip-smacking recipes and hi-resolution photographs of food. Now, you know who you are, because I commented on your sites and let you know that you are torturing this poor soul. I need to ask myself, is there anyplace that is safe from the influx of these tantalizing and outright cruel commercials?

Another thing that is perplexing, is why in the world I am even writing about this? All I am doing is torturing myself. This is even worse than watching those commercials or drooling over my wonderful, stretchy-cheese-laden, garlic-sprinkled, Chicago Connection Pizza (notice that I even capitalize the word PIZZA).

Now that I'm hungry, I should go into the kitchen and have a nice, crunchy celery stick; only I like to put peanut Butter on them, which kind of defeats the entire purpose of the celery stick. Okay, how about a nice bowl of steamed vegetables? Again, I like to top them with my patented garlic butter (minced garlic mixed in butter).Again, purpose defeated. Oh well, I guess I'll just turn the television and computer off and stare at the cat, who is staring at me...who will win??

When Scales Fly

Today I had my annual physical. I was very apprehensive about what my weight would be, since the scale I am using is a piece of...Anyway, I step on the scale and am told that I weigh 236.4 pounds. I took a look at my chart and they had me at a starting weight of 298. The scale that I am using at home had me at 276. So, I have lost about 15 more pounds than I thought. That's it! My scale may not be accurate any more, but it will still fly nicely out the window! The point of this wordiness is to say that the doctor came in and congratulated me on losing 62 pounds of fat since last August.

So, I come home and celebrate with a huge cheese pizza from Chicago Connection (you don't need to ask for extra cheese on these babies). No, I was good and made spaghetti (using the sauce I made a few weeks ago) for my family and I stuck with my usual frozen dinner; 240 calories of pure bleah. Actually, it's not that bad, I would just like to break down and have some real food sometimes.

Well, it's time for me to go, I need to teach myself how to do Time, Rate, and Distance calculations. I have no problem teaching and doing the actual equations, it is setting-up the equations (from the word problems) that I am having problems with. Have a great day and wish me luck as I delve into the wild world of Algebra.

Delete Cookies, No Way!

I am sitting here watching my beloved Packers play. I am also watching my wife bake cookies. She is making a double recipe of chocolate chip cookies. Since we had some left-over semi-sweet bakers chocolate (regular and white), she is using that instead of regular chocolate chips.

Here's my problem, I'm on this Die with a T and I really shouldn't be indulging my sweet tooth on such a delicious treat. You see, my sweet tooth is what got me into this mess in the first place. Before I started this diet, I had been a very bad person. One of the things I just loved to do, would be to have ice cream late at night. I'm not talking about just a few scoops, either. Hey, I'm no wimp I take at least a pint. I figure if I'm going to do something, I'm going to do it big.

This continued for several weeks and I was happy as a clam (a fat clam). The thing was, I started making it a nightly routine. It turned into something that I HAD to do to make my day complete. Sounds stupid, but I am a creature of habit. If I do something more than a few times, it will soon become a routine and from a routine it becomes a habit...good or bad.

After my yearly visit to the doctor and the diabetes warning, I knew that I had some habits to break, one of them being no more cartons of ice cream at night (which, as you know is the worst time to eat anything). I guess I should tell you that its been over a year since I've had any ice cream.

Now, what does this all have to do with chocolate chip cookies? Well, in one word...moderation. There is no reason why I can't have a fresh, hot, just from the oven, chocolate chip cookie and a nice cold glass of milk. I just can't have a bowl-full of them. It does no harm to have something you shouldn't (diet-wise) now and then. You just have to do so in moderation. If you can limit your intake of the "evil" foods, you will no longer have those intense "must have" cravings for those foods.

Diets are hard enough to stick to, we just don't need to make them any harder. Try and vary the foods you eat each day. Eating the same thing each day not only gets boring, but it can actually derail your diet. They say that variety is the spice of life. We all need something to look forward to and having something different to eat each day can help keep that spice in your life. There will be times when you will be tempted with an evil cookie or piece of cake. As long as you can control your portions, the occasional detour into SweetsVille can be achieved.
Now, about that cookie...

Another article of interest...Dieting and Eating:The Battle Rages