Wednesday, June 27, 2007

Starting Off Wrong, Finishing Strong

I had a bad start to the day yesterday, mentally, that is. I got on the scale and, after Monday's vacation 2 lb. increase, the scale went up 2 more lbs. I got on the treadmill and could only wind out 2 miles. Definitely bumming. I've been so goal oriented throughout this last year, I was just 3 lbs from my June goal before vacation and 6 lbs from 150 on my 1 year anniversary on July 12, I felt like those goals might be suddenly out of reach. What frustrated me was that I really worked hard on vacation to watch my eating and to exercise, so this was not what I had planned.

I went back and looked at some of the comments here and support on the bulletin boards that I read and it really turned my day around. I desperately did not want to fall backwards any further and started to pound water and keep eating right.

I know I've said it before, but I've been amazed by some of the support I've received from the virtual world. I've posted on a few web bulletin boards and assume that many people have been following my blog through links I've left there. With all that help, I'd like to share some of my favorite web sites:

Runner's World has a bulletin board that includes a weight loss forum. Among other things, each week people post their weight loss successes or stories. The forum is like one huge group hug every week. It is entirely positive and a real morale booster.

I've mentioned Hal Higdon before. He is a writer for Runner's World and hosts his own bulletin board. This is a great place for specific questions about running and training. The posters here seem to have a great deal of experience on these topics and Hal posts replies daily.

I found a South Beach Diet support bulletin board. This was actually recommend to me by a poster on the Runner's World site. Lots of support here and people giving personal advice from their own experiences.

There seem to be endless numbers of blogs being written about diet and weight loss. I wish I had time to check out more, but I'd never get anything else done. A few that I regularly check out are the similarly middle-aged blogs below:

Pat's Self Propelled Running blog is a regular read. He is a frequent commenter here and has good advice. He runs in the Arizona heat and has a passion for baseball, so there's more positives for Pat! He's lost more than 30 lbs. I don't even like to think about running in the 100 degree heat (but it's a dry heat!)

Big Mike writes Mike's Journal . Mike has lost a ton of weight and is unrecognizable from the before pics from his web site. He writes in amazing detail about his training and activities. Mike lives in Wisconsin.

Kim from Spokane, Washington pens Kim's Journey to Fitness. She is a triathelete and has lost more than 50 lbs. in a year and a half.

I finished the day yesterday with a 1 mile fun run in the Baltimore heat -- 88 degrees, 90% humidity and was rewarded this morning down all 4 lbs. BACK ON TRACK! (Props to Deb, who accurately predicted this quick turn around!)

To those I've mentioned here, and and to everyone else that's posted, written or called, thank you for keeping me on track and inspired!

L'Chaim!


4 comments:

Pat said...

Hey, thanks for the shout out. Glad to see you're back on track weight wise. I, always give myself some slack on vacations and holidays.

pat

bigmike600 said...

No doubt. Thanks for the props. You deserve all the credit. We can't be there to tell you what to eat and when to exercise. You do it yourself. All of us who have lost weight have to realize that we are in it for the long haul. If a couple pounds go back on, we have the knowlege and power to take them back off. Good Luck Jeff and thanks for the props.

Kim Herring said...

Hey Jeff! I'll add my thank you for the shout out. The weight loss/management journey is definitely a challenging one and something that I don't feel we can do my ourselves. It helps to have a motivating team and I am happy to call you a team mate in this journey.

Something that one of my fellow triathletes has reminded of on many occasions is that even once we lose the weight we still have to work at keeping fit. You can lose fitness by doing nothing so the exercise habits that we are building now will serve us for many years to come.

Great work and congrats on losing the 4 lbs. That is definitely a successful vacation.

Roger S said...

Remember, I was always the skinny kid. Never had to worry about what I ate, how much I ate, or how often. Then middle age set in. And I didn't change my eating habits, and I began to "swell." With age I became lazy and complacent and very sedentary. My itinerant life didn't help or encourage me to change. Five years ago your dad was visiting me in Houston and our cousin took a picture of us in Galveston. When I saw the photo, I was floored. (It dawned on me that I looked much better in the mirror than in real life.)

I chose the Sugar Busters diet and began exercising regularly. The lbs started melting away. I managed to lose 40 pounds in the next 12 months, and got back to where I was comfortable with myself and pleased with the way I looked and felt. For the past four years I have managed to maintain, never fluctuating more than 5 lbs.

I don't strictly adhere to the diet anymore, but my eating habits and choices are relatively true to good health. (If it ain't in the house, I can't eat it.) I learned that as long as you stay true to yourself and to the spirit of good health, maintain healthy habits (key word being 'habit') and keep exercising, you will never worry about, or dwell on whether you're doing the right things in your everyday life.

I realize that it's easy for me to say because weight was never an issue until later in life. But it became a serious issue as it affected my health. With change, my health issues have been minimalized and I'm feeling pretty good these days.

You are definitely of that mindset now, and the results have been physically and spiritually uplifting, and an inspiration to us all. Keep inspiring us.

Much love,
Unc