Beat Down!

My diet took a beat down just like my Saints! The diet cheat was planned. The beat down by the Rams was not planned. 😛

I blame them for all the cookies and extra pizza I ate to console myself for the horrific loss. 😀

Weight Statistics

323/172.9/165

There is a pretty good chance that the number goes even higher tomorrow even though I had a great Monday. I ate about 8k, yes 8k, milligrams of sodium yesterday. Insane. That means my body is probably going to hold onto every single drop of liquid I drink today.

Yesterday’s Meal Plan

Breakfast – Burger patty and cheese

Lunch – Spinach dip with chips, Pizza

Dinner – More pizza

Snacks – Chocolate chip cookies

Calories – 4k +

Biking – 0

Net Calories – 4k +

Ouch! My sister made her famous spinach dip yesterday and the basket of chips and giant bowl of dip was right next to me. I blame her evil cooking for my diet woes! 😛

Just joking. 😀

Actually, I’m not worried about yesterday. It was planned and I don’t see another planned cheat for at least two weeks and maybe all the way up to T-Giving.

Wow, I’ve got a lot of work to do over the next three weeks to get back into the weight loss battle with Optifast Loser. Three weeks of Atkins should get me back to my low or better. I’ve spotted him a huge head start but most of this weight is water. Some is real but most will fall off as the sodium moves out.

Biking Update

Are you kidding me? I was so stuffed yesterday I could barely move. No chance I was headed up to the levee for a ride yesterday.

Tip Of The Day

One concept I still need to learn and we all need to learn is to eat less even when pigging out.  I still tend to go overboard on my cheats. Well past the level of being comfortable.

One key way to do this is to eat SLOWER. Slow down the meal so your body has a chance to send the ALL FULL signal.  I really could have  and should have used this tip yesterday.

I was full but probably ate 3 more slices of pizza and then a mess of cookies even though I was about to explode like Mr. Creosote in Monty Python’s Meaning Of Life.

If I had slowed down a bit, the signals would have reached my brain to STOP EATING BEFORE YOU EXPLODE. I didn’t wait for those signals and I need to work on that.  We really need to learn to slow down when eating and give our body time to catch up to our mouths.

Happy Dieting, see you tomorrow

 

The Grumpy Man

 

Not A Fan Of October

 

 

 

 

 

 

Quick Snapshot

Biking Update

I’m not sure which month had the strongest winds. In May, I had only been riding for a month and a half so my legs weren’t as strong as they are now.  I think the strongest wind took place a few days ago but maybe May was worse overall.

I knew I was going to be watching football and eating pizza today, so I made sure I got out there on the levee yesterday.

Road Marker 420 – 10 Miles

Not a very good week. Only two rides for approx 16.5 miles. I was sick and not feeling great for most of the week so I do have a little bit of an excuse.

Weight Statistics

323/171.1/165

Not sure I believe that reading. I think the scale is messing with my head. 😀

I really was expecting a higher reading today.

I will get clubbed in the head by the scale tomorrow. I’ve been watching football and eating spinach dip, pizza and cookies with my sister.  My arm is sore from her bending my arm behind my back to force me to eat that junk. 😛

Back to Atkins tomorrow and back to the levee.

Yesterday’s Meal Plan

Breakfast – Burger patty with cheese

Lunch – Baked chicken

Dinner – Baked chicken and salad

Snack – Oatmeal

Calories – 1276

Biking – 466

Net Calories – 810

I had a real good day on Saturday in preparation for the planned cheat today. 😀

Blurp!

Tip Of The Day

Planned Cheats vs Unplanned Cheats

Both need to be rare.

When I started this diet, I told myself that one thing I would do differently is that I wouldn’t punish myself for planned cheats. I also wouldn’t avoid celebrations or family visits.  I would try to slightly moderate my eating at those special events but I wouldn’t pout in the corner eating a celery stick.

I think this really has been a key to my success this time. I am not depriving myself 100% of the time. This alleviates a lot of the mental stress and anxiety caused by a diet.  Knowing you can cheat from time to time really takes the pressure off.

Unplanned cheats aren’t good. We really need to limit these. I knew I was going to a pizza party today, so I really needed to behave until the party. I didn’t. I had the Taco Bell Meltdown Friday night.

This was just a lousy weekend. Usually, I am able to keep my cheats to 1 time on the weekends. This weekend I slipped up a bit.

You need to keep those unplanned cheats to the minimum and don’t go crazy with Planned Cheats. Use those when you start to feel the cracks forming in the diet. I know I’ll do better this week. I’m so full I may never eat again. Well, at least not until I’m hungry again. 😛

Happy Dieting, see you tomorrow

 

 

The Grumpy Man

Nemesis!!!

Sherlock Holmes

Vs

Professor James Moriarty

Then there was…..

Captain James Tiberius Kirk

Vs

Khan Noonien Singh

Then there was……

The Grumpy Man

VS

Yes, my nemesis reared its ugly head last night and I fell victim once again to the evil seductress that is Taco Bell. 😀

Weight Statistics

323/172.0/165

The scale only went up a tiny bit. I’m not buying it. I think tomorrow I will get pounded in the head by the scale with an evil number. I think the massive sodium spike takes a day to absorb more water so tomorrow will be ugly.

Yesterday’s Meal Plan

Breakfast – Burger and cheese

Lunch – Baked chicken and salad

Dinner – Baked chicken and salad

Snack – Oatmeal, Taco Bell Meltdown

Calories – 3500+

Biking – 362

Net Calories – 3500+

Not a very good day yesterday. I was hungry all day and night. Heck, I think I was still hungry even after the Taco Bell Meltdown. 😛

I am trying to get back on Atkins, but it hasn’t kicked in yet and my body was shrieking for more carbs yesterday. I obliged. 😛

Biking Update

I guess the good news is that I FINALLY got out on my bike on Friday for the first time this week. I almost waited until it was too late but I was feeling guilty (even though I was sick all week) so I forced myself out at the last-minute.

Wow! You know how I complain about wind. That previous wind wasn’t wind. Yesterday it was insanely windy. The first 3.2 miles were easy and then the final 3.2 miles took me a very long time riding into the gale force winds.

I only got about 6.5 miles in yesterday because it was cold, dark and windy.

Road Marker 330 – 6.4 Miles

Tip Of The Day

Small Plates

Psychology can actually help a little on your weight loss journey. You should use small plates when eating your meals.  This helps because your portions will be smaller and your brain will see a full plate and think Oh How Satisfying.

I don’t do this as much as I should, but I do eat many of my meals on small plates or bowls or cups.

It really can help you. 😀

Happy Dieting, see you tomorrow

 

 

The Grumpy Man

The Descent

After several days of climbing UP the scale, the scale finally gave me a break today and dropped.

I needed that. In case you don’t know I have a Thanksgiving competition with my pals Optifast Loser and Shonnie. We are racing to see who can lose the biggest percentage by T-Giving.

I started at 167.7 or somewhere in that neighborhood. I immediately dropped to 163.7 at which point I dropped Atkins and went back to carbs and jumped all the way back to 173.4. Boooooo! 😦

Weight Statistics

323/171.1/165 or low competition weight

I am glad the scale finally stopped movie up up and away. It looks like I add about 10 pounds of water moving from Atkins back to carbs. That is crazy.

As of today, I am back on Atkins until T-Giving. I need to lose a few extra pounds anyway because I will gain some over the holiday season.

Yesterday’s Meal Plan

Breakfast – Oatmeal

Lunch – Turkey and cheese on wheat with salad

Dinner – Turkey and cheese on wheat with salad

Snack – Oatmeal, 1 small slice of cake, baked chicken

Calories – 1550

Biking – 0

Net Calories – 1550

End of the month so that means cake at my Thursday night meeting. Yum! It was once again a struggle to eat just one piece but I did manage to keep it to one.

As I mentioned last night, I was perilously close to hitting Popeye’s but I knew I had a cheat planned for Sunday so I kept away from Popeye’s and headed to Walmart to buy Atkins supplies.

Biking Update

My energy level was still low plus it was my normal day off so I once again hid from the levee.

Tip Of The Day

It isn’t going to be all wine and roses. 😀

If it was easy to lose weight, we wouldn’t have gotten ourselves into this mess in the first place. 😛

“We choose to go to the moon in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard, because that goal will serve to organize and measure the best of our energies and skills, because that challenge is one that we are willing to accept, one we are unwilling to postpone, and one which we intend to win, and the others, too.”

Kennedy may have been talking about the M-o-o-n (that spells moon) but the quote works for weight loss too. 😀

There are going to be tough times ahead, but it is worth it. There is a light at the end of that tunnel. For some the tunnel will be longer than for others but dieting and getting in shape will make the rest of your life longer and happier.

The problem is the longer you are on a diet the greater the chance you will get away from what works and instead do what is more comfortable for you. 😛

How many times have I jumped off Atkins which has ALWAYS worked and switched to carbs which has never worked? Many many many times.  I started this blog in February, but last year I did the same thing. I would get sick of what was working and would move to something more comfortable which did not work.

A diet doesn’t need to be sheer misery but if you are really comfortable chances are you are no longer on a diet. 😀

Get back to what works. I know I did that today……. for now. 😀

Happy Dieting, see you tomorrow

The Grumpy Man

I knew it!

Yesterday I was a bit worried that I might see the scale move higher today because of all the extra sodium I chowed down Tuesday night.

What I wasn’t expecting was a 3 pound gain. 1500 calories yesterday but I get hit with a 3 pound water weight gain!!! Now I am up 10 pounds in 1 week even though I have behaved 6 out of 7 days.

Grrrrr! And people wonder why I’m grumpy! 😛

Weight Statistics

323/173.4/165

These definitely are the times that try men’s souls. 😀

It appears carbs simply won’t leave me alone. 😛

Yesterday’s Meal Plan

Breakfast – Oatmeal

Lunch – Turkey and cheese on wheat with salad

Dinner – Red beans and rice with sausage

Snack – Oatmeal, turkey on wheat

Calories – 1550

Biking – 0

Net Calories – 1550

 

No way I should go up 3 pounds based on that but the double sandwich means lots of sodium.

Biking Update

I was feeling better but still not 100%. I was still a bit tired but my nose was finally feeling better. I decided to give myself a couple more days to rest. I don’t want to relapse.

Tip Of The Day

There are going to be plenty of days when the scale kicks you while you are down. You need to manage those moments and make sure you don’t use them as an excuse to toss in the towel.

I’ve been grumpy all day and my brain almost had me convinced in the healing effects of Popeye’s chicken and biscuits. I’m usually out on Thursday nights so my brain was pushing real hard for me to swing by Popeye’s. I fought that urge and instead hit Walmart and loaded up on an Atkins menu.

Vent your anger and frustration. Don’t bottle it up and most definitely do not use that frustration with the scale as an excuse to pig out. A trip to Popeye’s would do nothing more than cause the scale to climb even higher.

Plus I do have a planned cheat for Sunday so I really shouldn’t be cheating tonight. 😀

Happy Dieting, see you tomorrow

 

 

The Grumpy Man