It’s been a busy two weeks. I missed last week’s weigh-in due to a prior obligation. I had no idea what I was in for when I weighed in this week! I gained 3.2 pounds. It was a little disheartening, but I continue to be encouraged by the success I have had up to this point.
I bet you are all wondering how I did on Thanksgiving. Between all of the food we and the Cowboys on TV, it was a bit tough to restrain myself. I just bit the bullet and played like I was a carnivore. Meat, meat and more meat. That’s what I ate. Not huge portions, but I skipped the sides and dined on turkey, ham, meatballs and salad instead. I also downed about 15 Cavatelli. I managed to stay away from the dessert table, opting for popcorn. I thought I was being good and then I find out this week that popcorn is something on the “don’t eat” list. It has too much fat. Peanut butter too. So I’ve had to stop eating both of those. It goes against conventional diet wisdom and everyone I’ve talked to is astonished to hear it!
I was able to start lifting last week and am really enjoying it. My goal is to get my strength back so I can out-lift my son!
One thing I’ve noticed this week is how encouraging people are. When they hear that I’ve gained weight they try to find reasons of why it could be. A lot of people have been saying that it’s because I’ve started lifting again and muscle weighs more than fat. That’s true, but I have a hard time believing that I’ve gained 3.2 pounds of muscle. I’m sure that’s a factor, but it isn’t the whole reason. I appreciate the support, though. It is really nice to see people being so supportive of the positive lifestyle change I am making.
There are a few other staff members at the Massillon Recreation Center that have been dieting and losing weight and they say the same thing – people are always cheering them on. We should all be each other’s cheerleaders, especially when it comes to making healthy lifestyle changes. I want you to be able to make healthy changes and so does the staff at Massillon Recreation Center. That’s why we are going to give you money to lose weight. Annual members, new and current (except everyone who took advantage of our Fall Back Special), can sign up to receive $1 per pound they lose in a 6 month period. As Gandhi said “Be the change you want to see in the world!”
Friday, December 4, 2009
Thursday, November 19, 2009
Get Fit, Stark! Week 8 - "Cross between Jillian Michaels and Satan"
Eight weeks in so far and our team is really kicking butt. I am really pumped about it and I couldn’t be prouder of everyone! I think a lot of it has to do with our support team at Aultman – Lindsay Milano and Sarah Leffler.
Lindsay is our fitness trainer. She is pretty much a cross between Jillian Michaels and Satan. That’s all I can say. She makes you work. But on the plus side of that, I am now able to jog 15 of the 30 minutes I am on the treadmill. Once I reach my goal weight, I can start lifting again and I am a little worried about what she has in store for me. To make it worse, I am so weak from this diet that my son can now out-lift me! Not Cool.
Sarah teaches our classes and leads our Tuesday meetings. She really does a great job. Her humor keeps it interesting and she does an excellent job of helping us understand the balance of protein, carbs, and fat we should be eating and how our bodies burn fat and calories. My outlook on food has completely changed. She’s helped me realize that losing it isn’t the hard part – keeping it off is. According to Sarah, if you go back to your old eating habits you’d have to workout 10 times more to keep the weight off. It really makes me think twice about what I used to eat.
My only complaint about Sarah stems from last night. On my way to last night’s class, I was pulled over for speeding and I got a speeding ticket. I asked Sarah very nicely if she would pick up the cost of my $120 ticket and she said no! Can you believe it?
I have been so busy the last two weeks that I don’t even have time to think about food. Usually my busy schedule forces me to eat fast food or whatever is available. Now, I plan ahead and bring my own water to make my shakes and puddings with so don’t have to waiver from my diet. I have been enjoying dinner with my family and actually getting to eat food again. I sit down with them, have 3 ounces of meat, a salad without ranch dressing (who knew lettuce had flavor?), and one of my shakes. I am still having a hard time drinking all of the water I am supposed to. It’s just so bland.
I did indulge myself and had half of a soft pretzel at the OSU game over the weekend. It tasted so good I could have eaten 10! But my restraint surprised me last night. I was up until 2 am watching four different basketball games (yes, all at once). Normally I would have made myself a ham and cheese sandwich, had some cheese puffs and chips and a whole thing of French onion dip. Instead I had A grape.
It’s hard to believe we are two months into it already. I am at the lowest weight I’ve been since 1990. I am sleeping better. My triglycerides and cholesterol are now at normal levels, as opposed to the high risk levels they were at before. I feel great and I’m depending on that to help keep me going through the next four months!
Lindsay is our fitness trainer. She is pretty much a cross between Jillian Michaels and Satan. That’s all I can say. She makes you work. But on the plus side of that, I am now able to jog 15 of the 30 minutes I am on the treadmill. Once I reach my goal weight, I can start lifting again and I am a little worried about what she has in store for me. To make it worse, I am so weak from this diet that my son can now out-lift me! Not Cool.
Sarah teaches our classes and leads our Tuesday meetings. She really does a great job. Her humor keeps it interesting and she does an excellent job of helping us understand the balance of protein, carbs, and fat we should be eating and how our bodies burn fat and calories. My outlook on food has completely changed. She’s helped me realize that losing it isn’t the hard part – keeping it off is. According to Sarah, if you go back to your old eating habits you’d have to workout 10 times more to keep the weight off. It really makes me think twice about what I used to eat.
My only complaint about Sarah stems from last night. On my way to last night’s class, I was pulled over for speeding and I got a speeding ticket. I asked Sarah very nicely if she would pick up the cost of my $120 ticket and she said no! Can you believe it?
I have been so busy the last two weeks that I don’t even have time to think about food. Usually my busy schedule forces me to eat fast food or whatever is available. Now, I plan ahead and bring my own water to make my shakes and puddings with so don’t have to waiver from my diet. I have been enjoying dinner with my family and actually getting to eat food again. I sit down with them, have 3 ounces of meat, a salad without ranch dressing (who knew lettuce had flavor?), and one of my shakes. I am still having a hard time drinking all of the water I am supposed to. It’s just so bland.
I did indulge myself and had half of a soft pretzel at the OSU game over the weekend. It tasted so good I could have eaten 10! But my restraint surprised me last night. I was up until 2 am watching four different basketball games (yes, all at once). Normally I would have made myself a ham and cheese sandwich, had some cheese puffs and chips and a whole thing of French onion dip. Instead I had A grape.
It’s hard to believe we are two months into it already. I am at the lowest weight I’ve been since 1990. I am sleeping better. My triglycerides and cholesterol are now at normal levels, as opposed to the high risk levels they were at before. I feel great and I’m depending on that to help keep me going through the next four months!
Thursday, November 5, 2009
Get Fit, Stark! Week 6 - Kinda Bored
It’s week 6 and I’m bored with the diet. It doesn’t feel new and fun and challenging anymore. Maybe it’s because I have been fortunate enough to lose so much weight so quickly or maybe it’s because most of my meals do not consist of actual food. Either way, it is just starting to get monotonous and I find myself wondering how this can go on for another four and a half months.
I guess my boredom comes from the lack of feeling challenged. In the beginning, staying on the diet and making healthy choices was very challenging. But in the last 6 weeks, I have conquered my habitual eating. I even passed out Halloween candy and only had one piece-a crunch bar, my favorite! In fact, even though I am allowed to eat meat now, I rarely ever actually do. I can’t believe how fast my habits changed. And that’s why it doesn’t feel challenging anymore.
They tell me I probably only have 2 weeks left on the liquid diet. After that, it will be all about portion control and making healthy food choices. It will probably be hard to go back on a regular diet and still resist the things I know I shouldn’t eat, but I know I can handle it. I believe that if I stopped the program right now, I would continue making healthy choices and would not gain back the weight I have lost so far.
On the plus side, working out has definitely helped improve my fitness. When I started, I could only jog for 2 of the 20 minutes I was on the treadmill. I’m a little embarrassed to admit that seeing that I work in a recreation center with fitness equipment right there. That being said, I can now run for 12 of the 20 minutes. It’s awesome. I will be doing a combination of cardio and weights and hope that I can build muscle mass and level my weight out around 260-265 once I am working out eating regular food.
Maybe I have already started building muscle, or maybe I’m closing in on my weight loss plateau. Either way, this was my smallest weight loss yet. I only lost 3.2 pounds and was not the biggest loser on my Get Fit, Stark! team. No one guessed my weight loss correctly in the contest at the Recreation Center, so the 50/50 pot just keeps growing! I feel like I should let someone in on what I think I’ve lost just so there can be a winner!
I would also like to say that I am very proud of all of my Aultman teammates, the work they have put in to their diets and the results they have achieved. Their stories should be inspirational to anyone looking to get fit and healthy!
I guess my boredom comes from the lack of feeling challenged. In the beginning, staying on the diet and making healthy choices was very challenging. But in the last 6 weeks, I have conquered my habitual eating. I even passed out Halloween candy and only had one piece-a crunch bar, my favorite! In fact, even though I am allowed to eat meat now, I rarely ever actually do. I can’t believe how fast my habits changed. And that’s why it doesn’t feel challenging anymore.
They tell me I probably only have 2 weeks left on the liquid diet. After that, it will be all about portion control and making healthy food choices. It will probably be hard to go back on a regular diet and still resist the things I know I shouldn’t eat, but I know I can handle it. I believe that if I stopped the program right now, I would continue making healthy choices and would not gain back the weight I have lost so far.
On the plus side, working out has definitely helped improve my fitness. When I started, I could only jog for 2 of the 20 minutes I was on the treadmill. I’m a little embarrassed to admit that seeing that I work in a recreation center with fitness equipment right there. That being said, I can now run for 12 of the 20 minutes. It’s awesome. I will be doing a combination of cardio and weights and hope that I can build muscle mass and level my weight out around 260-265 once I am working out eating regular food.
Maybe I have already started building muscle, or maybe I’m closing in on my weight loss plateau. Either way, this was my smallest weight loss yet. I only lost 3.2 pounds and was not the biggest loser on my Get Fit, Stark! team. No one guessed my weight loss correctly in the contest at the Recreation Center, so the 50/50 pot just keeps growing! I feel like I should let someone in on what I think I’ve lost just so there can be a winner!
I would also like to say that I am very proud of all of my Aultman teammates, the work they have put in to their diets and the results they have achieved. Their stories should be inspirational to anyone looking to get fit and healthy!
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
Get Fit, Stark! Week 5 - Meat, glorious meat!
Well, 5 weeks in the books and I am allowed to eat meat again! That first bite was pure heaven and it continued for the rest of my 3 ounce serving. The after effects, though, were not as delightful. I was pure bubble guts. It’s crazy how quickly your body gets used to not eating meat!
Because I am eating some real food again, I was not feeling a big loss this week. Boy was I surprised when I stepped on the scale and found out I dropped 8.2 pounds. Now I’m only about 5 pounds away from my original goal weight and there’s still about 5 months to go! I’m adding 10 pounds to my goal, so now I’m shooting for 255. I am feeling really great and optimistic about it.
I am still only able to work out a little bit because of my restricted diet. Those workouts are fine, but I’m looking forward to pumping some iron next week. I haven’t really enjoyed working out and lifting weights since college and that was more about the interaction and bonding with my teammates than it was about lifting. I’m looking for a good workout buddy to help keep me motivated to lift.
I’m finding the motivation to stick to the diet because of my success on it. I’ve lost a total of 43 pounds so far and I am feeling better than I have in a long time. I can sleep better and I just feel healthier. I want all of you reading this to feel as great as I do right now and I hope I can be a motivation for you.
I might not be able to make it easier for you to work out, but I can help motivate you and I can make it cheaper! To help get you in shape, we are offering a Daylight Savings Fall Back Special. All new annual memberships purchased between November 1 and November 15 will be 20% off! I want all of you to feel as great as I do and now you have a chance to get fit for less. Take advantage of it, and a few months down the road you’ll feel fitter, healthier, and better about yourself like I do!
Thursday, October 22, 2009
Get Fit, Stark! Week 4- The Birthday
Last week, I talked about will power. This week I think I might have to reiterate my point. What I’ve found out over the past month is that will power is probably the single most important key to weight loss. And will power is a funny thing because once you start exerting it, you feel better about yourself and are more confident in what you can accomplish. Look at it this way: when you don’t eat the cookie that is sitting in front of you, you feel better about yourself because you stuck to your diet. If you would have eaten the cookie, you would have enjoyed it while it lasted, but felt bad about doing so afterwards. The next time you have temptation staring you in the face, you will remember how not eating it made you feel better for longer than eating it would have and you’ll repeat the behavior. All the while slowly building your will power until it is second nature to make healthier choices. And that’s the bottom line of a diet.
Talk about a test of will power – this week is my birthday week, so temptation is flying at me left and right. My brother sent me a cookie bouquet of Dallas Cowboy Football Cookies and I couldn’t eat them! I gave them to all of my staff at our staff meeting and then had to stare at them through the whole thing. They smelled delicious and made it difficult to concentrate, but I survived. I did give in and have a very small piece of ice cream cake since it was my birthday. It was excellent…until it just sat like a lump in my stomach for the rest of the night. And I didn’t even eat my normal size piece! It’s amazing how quickly your body adapts to a healthier lifestyle.
I was finally allowed to start exercising this week. We had one group exercise with Get Fit Stark! and I was amazed to find out how many people had never worked out in a gym before. It really got me thinking about why that might be and how to help people overcome their apprehension. Since this is our line of work, my staff and I started brainstorming ways to solve this problem. We have some big things coming at the Massillon Recreation Center – like hours just for those who have never exercised before, opening a circuit-style workout and a fitness challenge members that goes along with what I am doing with the Get Fit, Stark! Program.
I came in a little under my usual weekly weight loss this week, only losing 4.2 pounds, but I know that is still an accomplishment. Hopefully all of this birthday food goes away so I can keep on losing!
Talk about a test of will power – this week is my birthday week, so temptation is flying at me left and right. My brother sent me a cookie bouquet of Dallas Cowboy Football Cookies and I couldn’t eat them! I gave them to all of my staff at our staff meeting and then had to stare at them through the whole thing. They smelled delicious and made it difficult to concentrate, but I survived. I did give in and have a very small piece of ice cream cake since it was my birthday. It was excellent…until it just sat like a lump in my stomach for the rest of the night. And I didn’t even eat my normal size piece! It’s amazing how quickly your body adapts to a healthier lifestyle.
I was finally allowed to start exercising this week. We had one group exercise with Get Fit Stark! and I was amazed to find out how many people had never worked out in a gym before. It really got me thinking about why that might be and how to help people overcome their apprehension. Since this is our line of work, my staff and I started brainstorming ways to solve this problem. We have some big things coming at the Massillon Recreation Center – like hours just for those who have never exercised before, opening a circuit-style workout and a fitness challenge members that goes along with what I am doing with the Get Fit, Stark! Program.
I came in a little under my usual weekly weight loss this week, only losing 4.2 pounds, but I know that is still an accomplishment. Hopefully all of this birthday food goes away so I can keep on losing!
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
Get Fit, Stark! Week 3
All diets eventually come down to one thing: WILL POWER. Mine is no different-that’s what the third week has been all about. I’m still craving meat like crazy and it is getting really tough to down a gallon of water every day. Yes, a gallon of water and yes, it is as boring as you would imagine it to be. I never thought I would say Crystal Light is a lifesaver, but Crystal Life is a lifesaver!
I attended Baldwin Wallace’s Sports Hall of Fame Dinner over the weekend. It was great to see all of my old friends; however, it was not great to see the food table. I felt like I was in a bad dream! The only thing worse than staring at all of that food was turning around and seeing the dessert spread. All I could think was ‘someone please wake me up from this horrible dream!’ I mean all of this delicious food and I couldn’t eat it. Talk about will power. It was worse than last weekend! I skipped one of my drink packets so I could have 3 oz. of roast beef and a small salad. I put some pasta on my plate, but it was just for show – I didn’t eat any of it. People noticed I wasn’t eating like I normally would and I told them all I wasn’t feeling well. For some reason, I am a little embarrassed to tell all of my college buddies that I am on a diet. Let alone a liquid diet. It’s just not the ‘cool’ thing to do I guess.
On a positive note, my dog likes me a lot more now then before I started this diet. See, being the habitual eater I am, sometimes I forget I can’t eat things and I’ll grab a piece of ham out of the refrigerator. Then I remember I am on the diet and toss it to the dog. So it isn’t really me he likes more, just the extra food.
As this goes on and I get more used to my diet, the things that used to be really hard are getting easier. I don’t have a problem cooking the family meals anymore. I just try not to cook meatballs so not to tempt myself. And it helps that people are noticing my weight loss. There is no turning back now that people can see it!
I can finally work out again after five years of being a slug. But I don’t think that’s going to help me have a big weight loss this week. I haven’t been as hungry, so I’ve been skipping some of my supplements because, let’s be honest, sometimes they aren’t the most delicious things in the world. Then I found out that if I don’t eat all of the calories I should, my metabolism plummets and I stop losing weight. So needless to say I’ve started eating/drinking all of my allowed calories again. And if the scale isn’t where I want it to be this week, the scale and Sarah are flying out the window! Hopefully that doesn’t happen tonight!
I attended Baldwin Wallace’s Sports Hall of Fame Dinner over the weekend. It was great to see all of my old friends; however, it was not great to see the food table. I felt like I was in a bad dream! The only thing worse than staring at all of that food was turning around and seeing the dessert spread. All I could think was ‘someone please wake me up from this horrible dream!’ I mean all of this delicious food and I couldn’t eat it. Talk about will power. It was worse than last weekend! I skipped one of my drink packets so I could have 3 oz. of roast beef and a small salad. I put some pasta on my plate, but it was just for show – I didn’t eat any of it. People noticed I wasn’t eating like I normally would and I told them all I wasn’t feeling well. For some reason, I am a little embarrassed to tell all of my college buddies that I am on a diet. Let alone a liquid diet. It’s just not the ‘cool’ thing to do I guess.
On a positive note, my dog likes me a lot more now then before I started this diet. See, being the habitual eater I am, sometimes I forget I can’t eat things and I’ll grab a piece of ham out of the refrigerator. Then I remember I am on the diet and toss it to the dog. So it isn’t really me he likes more, just the extra food.
As this goes on and I get more used to my diet, the things that used to be really hard are getting easier. I don’t have a problem cooking the family meals anymore. I just try not to cook meatballs so not to tempt myself. And it helps that people are noticing my weight loss. There is no turning back now that people can see it!
I can finally work out again after five years of being a slug. But I don’t think that’s going to help me have a big weight loss this week. I haven’t been as hungry, so I’ve been skipping some of my supplements because, let’s be honest, sometimes they aren’t the most delicious things in the world. Then I found out that if I don’t eat all of the calories I should, my metabolism plummets and I stop losing weight. So needless to say I’ve started eating/drinking all of my allowed calories again. And if the scale isn’t where I want it to be this week, the scale and Sarah are flying out the window! Hopefully that doesn’t happen tonight!
Monday, October 5, 2009
Get Fit, Stark! Week 2
Another week of the liquid diet is officially in the books. At the first weigh-in on Tuesday, I was down 18 pounds. It was extremely encouraging. People are starting to notice the difference, and that helps make this all feel worthwhile.
After having a successful first week on my diet, I got to thinking about why some people “cheat” on their diets. I think it may be easier for me because I am not allowed to eat any food. I don’t get to eat a little bit and then have to stop. That’s got to be hard. And why do they call it “cheating” anyway? It sounds so negative. Just call it a slip-up. Cheating has such bad connotations. Diets are hard and sometimes you need a little pick-me-up to get you through. Think about it – you are already making a huge change trading all the things you enjoyed eating for things that are healthy and not always (or ever) quite as good. Everyone is going to have a little slip-up here and there. I should share my little trick of putting the food into my mouth to get the taste, then spitting it out before I actually eat it. Maybe that would help them. Actually it would help me to remember it, considering I had a few slip-ups this week.
A few days ago, I accidentally ate a meatball while cleaning up the kitchen. I didn’t even realize I did it until it was too late. It’s that eating out of habit thing I’ve been telling you about. My second slip-up came on Saturday while I was watching football (of course). I’m telling you it’s just not the same without being able to eat or drink anything! Anyway, I was in a hospitality suite for the Michigan/Michigan State game and there was all this food just sitting there. No one was eating it. It was just being wasted. You can’t just waste food like that, so I took a bite of a cheeseburger (no bun!). I think I kept it in my mouth and savored it for 15 minutes before I finally ate it. It was absolutely delicious and well worth the guilt I felt about it later.
I think the first week of a diet might be easier than then next one. The novelty of being on the diet and the novelty of the challenge is starting to wear off, making it harder to stick to. But on the other hand, I am sleeping better now and people are starting to notice I’ve lost weight. I don’t really have the desire to eat fast food, but I drive by too many Dairy Queens on the way home and it is getting harder to not swing in and grab a blizzard. Although I will admit, saving money by not eating all that fast food is definitely nice!
I have my next weigh-in on Tuesday. I am not really feeling a big loss coming on. The Recreation Center is holding a weekly 50/50 drawing for whoever guesses how much weight I lose each week. Talk about pressure! If I gain weight or don’t lose enough I could keep someone from winning the pot! But I am going to rise to the occasion, slip-ups and all.
After having a successful first week on my diet, I got to thinking about why some people “cheat” on their diets. I think it may be easier for me because I am not allowed to eat any food. I don’t get to eat a little bit and then have to stop. That’s got to be hard. And why do they call it “cheating” anyway? It sounds so negative. Just call it a slip-up. Cheating has such bad connotations. Diets are hard and sometimes you need a little pick-me-up to get you through. Think about it – you are already making a huge change trading all the things you enjoyed eating for things that are healthy and not always (or ever) quite as good. Everyone is going to have a little slip-up here and there. I should share my little trick of putting the food into my mouth to get the taste, then spitting it out before I actually eat it. Maybe that would help them. Actually it would help me to remember it, considering I had a few slip-ups this week.
A few days ago, I accidentally ate a meatball while cleaning up the kitchen. I didn’t even realize I did it until it was too late. It’s that eating out of habit thing I’ve been telling you about. My second slip-up came on Saturday while I was watching football (of course). I’m telling you it’s just not the same without being able to eat or drink anything! Anyway, I was in a hospitality suite for the Michigan/Michigan State game and there was all this food just sitting there. No one was eating it. It was just being wasted. You can’t just waste food like that, so I took a bite of a cheeseburger (no bun!). I think I kept it in my mouth and savored it for 15 minutes before I finally ate it. It was absolutely delicious and well worth the guilt I felt about it later.
I think the first week of a diet might be easier than then next one. The novelty of being on the diet and the novelty of the challenge is starting to wear off, making it harder to stick to. But on the other hand, I am sleeping better now and people are starting to notice I’ve lost weight. I don’t really have the desire to eat fast food, but I drive by too many Dairy Queens on the way home and it is getting harder to not swing in and grab a blizzard. Although I will admit, saving money by not eating all that fast food is definitely nice!
I have my next weigh-in on Tuesday. I am not really feeling a big loss coming on. The Recreation Center is holding a weekly 50/50 drawing for whoever guesses how much weight I lose each week. Talk about pressure! If I gain weight or don’t lose enough I could keep someone from winning the pot! But I am going to rise to the occasion, slip-ups and all.
Wednesday, September 30, 2009
Kenn's Get Fit Stark Week 1
I have been on my liquid diet for a week now. I hate the chocolate flavored shakes. I don’t think I can drink another one of those. I traded them in for different flavors. Now to sum it up my first week in one word: TOUGH. You don’t realize how much you eat or how much you enjoy eating it until your can’t anymore!
I eat out of habit, like having a bowl of cereal every night or eating all the meatballs from my family’s Spaghetti-Os, so it’s taking a lot of will power to break those habits. It’s not that bad during the week because I’m so busy with work and my kids’ activities, but the weekend was where it got a little hairy.
I’ve got three boys who love to eat and you can’t believe how tough it is to just sit there and watch them eat. Saturday, they wanted French toast and pancakes for breakfast. The smell was intoxicating! Stacks of pancakes and plates of French toast smothered in melted butter and warm syrup. I’m starting to drool now just thinking about it. It was hard to resist, but I persevered.
Saturday night I played cards with a few buddies. Not even thinking about it, I accidentally put two potato chips in my mouth. Luckily I realized what I did and promptly spit them back out, but the taste went a long way. Maybe this could be my new diet trick… I won some money on top of it, so I’d call it a pretty successful night. Good thing too, because I knew the day to come would be the toughest.
Sundays, football, and food just go hand in hand together. Now it’s just Sundays and football for me. No food. Football just isn’t the same without food and beverages. That’s all I can really say about it. To make matters worse, I had to prepare lunch AND dinner for my family. Did you know how much food you can eat while preparing a meal? Well you won’t until you have to stop. No little tastes here or there, no matter how good it smells or looks.
This first week was certainly tough, and I have a long road ahead of me. When I started, I was starving all the time and was getting headaches from not eating, but thankfully those have gone away and I’m not quite as hungry all the time. They say it takes three weeks to break one habit and develop a new one. We’ll see about that. Maybe I’ll just start getting tastes of things then spitting them out instead to help me get through.
I eat out of habit, like having a bowl of cereal every night or eating all the meatballs from my family’s Spaghetti-Os, so it’s taking a lot of will power to break those habits. It’s not that bad during the week because I’m so busy with work and my kids’ activities, but the weekend was where it got a little hairy.
I’ve got three boys who love to eat and you can’t believe how tough it is to just sit there and watch them eat. Saturday, they wanted French toast and pancakes for breakfast. The smell was intoxicating! Stacks of pancakes and plates of French toast smothered in melted butter and warm syrup. I’m starting to drool now just thinking about it. It was hard to resist, but I persevered.
Saturday night I played cards with a few buddies. Not even thinking about it, I accidentally put two potato chips in my mouth. Luckily I realized what I did and promptly spit them back out, but the taste went a long way. Maybe this could be my new diet trick… I won some money on top of it, so I’d call it a pretty successful night. Good thing too, because I knew the day to come would be the toughest.
Sundays, football, and food just go hand in hand together. Now it’s just Sundays and football for me. No food. Football just isn’t the same without food and beverages. That’s all I can really say about it. To make matters worse, I had to prepare lunch AND dinner for my family. Did you know how much food you can eat while preparing a meal? Well you won’t until you have to stop. No little tastes here or there, no matter how good it smells or looks.
This first week was certainly tough, and I have a long road ahead of me. When I started, I was starving all the time and was getting headaches from not eating, but thankfully those have gone away and I’m not quite as hungry all the time. They say it takes three weeks to break one habit and develop a new one. We’ll see about that. Maybe I’ll just start getting tastes of things then spitting them out instead to help me get through.
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