We Don't Carry That Size!

How many times have I heard that before? Shopping for clothes has always been a mini nightmare. Nothing really fits right, nothing looks good on me, etc. So today I went out with the family to shop for a number of items, one of which was clothes for me. I was primarily looking for summer clothing, shorts and golf shirts, as I am heading south in a few weeks for a little getaway. I went to a local golf specialty store in my area and began to try on some stuff. The shorts I grabbed off the rack were a size 32, a guy can dream right? The pair I really liked were too big! Can you believe that? So the guy helping me says, "Well you are not going to get them any smaller than that, sorry."

Well, that is something I have never heard before!! I guess I am smaller than I think. I still turn sideways to get through tight spaces, only to find that I didn't need to turn. I still have a perception of myself that is much larger than I really am. It will take some time to change that I guess. So wild!

On the exercise front I am finished week #2 of the 10k program. I also signed up for my first 10k race. It is in Hilton Head, South Carolina. Jackie and I are going there for a mini vacation and there just happened to be a race that weekend. Everything aligned well so I am now signed up!! The big date is February 12th. I will be certain to let everyone know how it goes. I have no finishing time expectations yet, but I will likely set a goal prior to the race.

Be healthy everyone.....

New Year - New goals

Happy New Year everyone! With the start of each new year it is always a good time to reflect on the previous year and set some goals for this upcoming year.

Last year was very good from a health and fitness perspective. That is what this blog has been all about! I lost 76 lbs in 2010. Wow, still hard to believe. It took lots of hard work but it has been worth it. I am proud. So what do I do now to make 2011 another fabulous year?

Weight goal - I still have 2.8 lbs to go to hit my goal. The last 10 has been rough so the final 2.8 is not a given. My first goal is to get rid of those final 2.8 lbs by the end of January.

Fitness Goals - Now this is the fun part! I will compete in two Duathons this year. I will also run my first 10k, and my first 1/2 Marathon. Obviously the 1/2 is a huge goal. Ginormous! Lots of training will be required for all of it, but I can do it. I have come this far, why stop now?

Btw, I have had four runs in a row now without knee pain!!! Yippeeee, let's hope it hangs on for all of 2011. Injuries and rehabilitation was a real downer in late 2010, I don't want to repeat that!!!

Be healthy everyone!!

Long time without an update....

Yes, it has been awhile since I updated my blog. Life can be like that. It is always a busy period with Christmas coming up and all. I also have had some travel to do so that keeps things hectic. So here is the summary of what has been going on.

I still hate the push up program I am on. It is soooo hard. That being said, I have noticed a big difference in my abilities since beginning the program. It has me up to 225 push ups in one training session now. Yes, I didn't mistype that number, it is 225. Can you believe that? That is a crazy amount of push ups in my opinion. The even crazier thing is that I can do it!!!!! Yay for me!!!!

Ok, so here is the big news, the huge news, the gigantic news. Are you ready? Are you on the edge of your seat? I stepped on the scale today and it read 169.4. I backed away, kicked it, and stepped up again. It still read 169.4. Hmmmmm, could it be that I finally got over my hurdle of being in the 170s? YES!!!!!!!!! So now I have to keep myself there. I have 4.4 lbs remaining to hit my final goal. It will not be easy, especially with the holiday season looming.

So you want to hear an acceptance speech do you? I would like to thank McDonalds, for making me sick of them, never going back there. I would like to thank my family, for putting up with a new healthy living lifestyle. I would like to thank all of my Lose IT friends, you have contributed to my success in numerous ways. You know who you are, take a bow now!!!

Oh wait, I am getting carried away. The real acceptance speech comes when I hit the goal. Be prepared everyone!!!

That's all for now, time for some exercise........

Still Struggling with Injury....

Injuries suck! After about 6 weeks since I first injured my knee it feels about as bad as it ever has. I thought at one point that it was getting better, but clearly it is not. I have been going to physiotherapy for about a month but I don’t think it is helping much. I am beginning to think that I might be headed towards a surgery, but hesitant to actually get that diagnosis. I can bike with no issues at all but the running just kills me. I had come so far with my running and I feel like I am going to slip big time with this injury.

I have been maintaining my weight for the most part. I have had lots of travel recently which has made eating more difficult. So in reality maintaining where I am is a victory. I am currently at 172.2 lbs, with a goal to get to 165. These last 8-10 lbs will be very difficult to achieve.

On to the pushup program, I am into week #4 of the program. The other day it had me do 160 push-ups, crazy, crazy, crazy. But guess what, I did it! Still not sure I will get to the 100 straight push-ups, which is the purpose of this program. I will just keep plugging along.

So Christmas is coming up quickly. With two teenage kids there is a good chance that I will be broke at the end of the remaining 4 weeks. Everything is so expensive, especially the electronics that all teens apparently require to survive. I guess I can’t complain as I am a gadget guy myself. Does everyone have a plan for how to avoid the food temptations over Christmas? It will be a difficult time.

Stay healthy everyone….

Injuries.....

Well I thought I was over the hump with my knee issue, I was wrong. I ran a little to hard last week and I definitely felt it. It seems like this nagging injury will just not go away. I know deep down that I should just stop running for a couple weeks, let it really heal, but I can't bring myself to do that. I could of course just substitute extra bike workouts to make up for the lack of running but I like the variety. I will take it day to day I guess.

This weekend is another University visit for Brittany. She seems to have her mind set on going to Waterloo, but is still visiting some of the open houses at the others. I think the applications are due by the end of November so time is running out to make a final decision.

Brandon is currently in a video game induced trance. You see, he got a copy of Call of Duty - Black Ops on Tuesday night. It is the new rage in terms of video games, I may have to try it myself this weekend if time permits.

The weight loss continues, which is a good thing. I am trying to add more protein and less carbs to my diet. I want to see what effect that will have on the rate of loss. The 100 push up program continues to kill me each time I do it. Last night the sets were 25-20-15-15-25. Yes, that is 100 of them! The final set of 25 was pure torture. This is only week #3!!!! I still can't imagine doing 100 in a row, but time will tell. I never thought I would lose 70 lbs either!!!!

Be healthy everyone!

Another Goal Weight Reached

So I reached yet another goal weight last Monday. I am now 0.6 lbs below that goal. I elected to reset my goal for the last time. I now have 9.4 lbs to go. It will take me some time to lose those final pounds, but good things come to those who keep at it right?

I have also continued to work on the 100 pushup program. It has been really tough as I don't like doing pushups. It is a three times a week program designed at getting me up to100 pushups straight in 6 weeks. I am at 83 at this point, but trust me, it hurts big time.

Recent pic of me....

Brittany and Jackie spent dome time this weekend at the University of Waterloo open house. It was time well spent in that she really narrowed down her program choices. She is looking at a pure math degree now, with a B. Ed after that possibly. She also settled on a residence. She fell in love with the St. Jerome residence, and smaller class sizes. Of course, this seems to be the most expensive option.

Did I mention that working for a living sucks??

Be healthy everyone.

Spooky Day!!!

It's Halloween! This used to be a fun day when the kids were younger. They used to be so excited to get dressed up and go out for candies. I was always the one that stayed back at home and handed out the candies at our house. One for the kids, one for me, one for the kids, one for me......

So how will the strategy work this year? I figure if I can go to bed before the kids start showing up I can avoid the temptation!! Well that's not going to happen, so willpower must kick in. The problem with those darn little chocolate bars is that you can't eat just one. I mean they are only 60 cals each right? Multiply that by 10 and you have a ton of trouble.

My sore knee is getting much better. I have had a few trips to the physio-therapist and it has really helped. Last week I ran a couple of 5k runs, at a slow pace, just building back up, testing my knee. There is certainly positive progress. Of course, I want it fixed right now!!! I am not big on the patience thing.

I mentioned previously that I am very close to my goal weight. I only had 0.4 lbs to go. I decided last night that I would add 10 more pounds to my FINAL goal. It will be very very hard to find another 10 lbs but who said goals are suppose to be easy right? In reality, the first 68 lbs will seem easy compared to the last 10 lbs.

I watched a very inspiring documentary last night. It is called "Spirit of the Marathon". It follows a number of people training for the 2005 Chicago Marathon. People just like you and me. It was a very good movie, even if you have no Marathon aspirations. It can inspire you to reach whatever goal you set for yourself. I would highly recommend it!

Have a spooky day everyone!!!