Well Then.

That took quite a while didn't it.  I'm assuming you were worried if I was dead, alive, or still over-weight.  Well I am glad to report that I am alive and still over-weight.  I don't want to type up too much for now, but I did want to give a bit of a progress update.

Over the past month I have gotten back into my work out and diet routine that I enjoy, and it actually seems to work slowly but surely for me, so I'm sticking to it.  A lot of things have changed since the last time I was motivated enough to post on here but that's a story for another time.  The important news is I've been at it pretty diligently for a month now and I wanted to share my progress.  Although I won't say I've been perfect (there was a graduation, and I had cake.  Twice.) I have been doing well. I haven't even had a drink this month either, which I find is an accomplishment in itself.  So down to the numbers (who doesn't love numbers).

I have been using an app that I found in the Google Play Store called Perfect Body.  Sorry iPhone users I haven't found it for you.  It does a pretty good job of getting a routine in place for you.  Although the 5 days a week of working out seems intimidating at first, it's not that bad considering I can usually bang my way through a workout in about 20-30 mins.  We have a pretty decent home gym setup here at House Ironwood, but there are still a few things I wasn't able to do.  So I tried my best to substitute.  If you find yourself in a real gym you shouldn't have any problems completing this workout at all.

I started the month off horribly at a bloated 276ish, and ended my month at a solid 269.  That was a pretty good first bump down.  Now keep in mind that I have also started lifting weights again so that is with my increased muscle mass as well.  Judging from the pictures I took in Feb where I was mainly focused on weight loss and NOT exercising, I'd say I have made an improvement.  Enough of the words part, heres some ok looking pictures of a fat guy.

2 months of 'Progress'

It has been a while since I've updated my blog, but I figured I would provide you with an update!  The holiday season really negated any progress I made during December, but in January I got back on the horse and took my weight from 279 lbs in December to 270 lbs today (2/4).  I would say since the holidays it's an 11 lb drop in weight.  It's not as noticeable in pictures as it is in the way my clothes fit.  Shirts that were a bit tighter before now fit great!  On the flip side of that clothes that fit just fine before now are too big.  Some of them I've only worn once or twice.  I guess I'd rather buy new clothes than be over weight.  Well anyways the non impressive pictures are posted below.

Pictures below is me at 270 lbs 2/4/2013

Ugh Holidays

Well holiday season is coming to a close, and I have to say I did not take it well at all.  Don't get me wrong, I had a great holiday.  I got to see a lot of family, exchanged gifts, and got to see a lot of friends in from out of town.  My diet on the other hand went the complete opposite direction.  So with New Years freshly behind me, I won't be doing a weigh in or pictures this month.  If you really want to know, take the pictures from last month and add a few pounds ha.  Well this month has a few days that I will be taking off from my diet (ND BCS Game, South Bend Brew-fest for instance), but for the most part I should be on my game.  Wish me luck!

Warning: Fat Guy With No Shirt

As you might of noticed I haven't updated this blog in quite a while.  As you also might have speculated I did not hit my goal of 250 lbs by September.  I did how ever make it down to 269 lbs in August.  Since then my diet and exercise has more of an after thought.  I tried to eat healthy and maintain my progress, but dealing with moving out, stressful financial situations, and career changes got in the way.  I spent about 3 months out of the gym, slipped back into some of my bad eating habits, and gained 10 lbs.  Although it's not the end of the world, it is a minor set back that I would not have had if I had just paid a little bit more attention into what I was putting into my body.  It is a bit frustrating to be back at the same weight I was in June and I'm hoping that won't happen again.

One of the things I regret not doing when I started losing weight was taking any 'Before' pictures.  I have plenty of pictures of me being bigger, but that doesn't do it justice.  So putting my hesitation aside I finally have some.  Now it's about as bad as you can get if you caught me at the beach right now, so you should be able to deal with it.  I'm hoping over the next few months to be able to look back and be able to visually make progress as well as numerically on the scale.

So below are my 'Before' pictures on 12/7/2012 at 279 lbs.

 

Week 11

So it's been a while since I've posted an update, so I figured I would catch you guys up on my progress.  I've was pretty wishy washy a few weeks ago.  As you can see, I didn't even post anything on here.  The last 2 weeks though I've really buckled down and pushed hard.  I've been going to the gym 4-5 times a week and sticking to my diet strictly.  I've made some progress over the last few weeks, but I'm still about 5 or 6 lbs away from where I should be.  The next few weeks I am going to try and catch up.

In the meantime as stated above I am going to the gym regularly and making great strides in my fitness.  I've been focusing a lot on running lately, and can now run a mile straight without stopping.  This is something I've not been able to do EVER!  Not even in High School with regular fitness classes was I able to run a mile straight.  I've also been hitting about a 10-11 minute mile which for me, is pretty impressive.  Usually after I run 1 mile I walk a ways and switch between running/walking for another mile.  If you told me 2 years ago I would willingly be running 2 miles, I wouldn't of believed you.  Just need to be able to run 3.1 miles and I'll be all set for that 5K I'm planning on running next year!

If you are interested in starting to lose weight, I would HIGHLY suggest getting some sort of calorie counter and start using it.  One of the best ones I've found is  MyFitnessPal.  It allows you to track your calories, make your own meals, track your fitness, and even add friends so they can continue to motivate you.  Speaking of motivation, there is an online community dedicated to losing weight that is very inspiring.  Check out /r/loseit!


April 29 278     279.7
May 6    276.5  280.2
May 13  274     -
May 20  272.5  -
May 27  271     -
June 3   269.5  279
June 10  268    275
June 17  266.5 271
June 24  265
July 1     263.5


Sometimes it's hard to gauge your progress.  I didn't take any 'Before' pictures with my shirt off (I would of instantly deleted them), but here is a comparison of my face minus about 84 lbs.  Enjoy.

March 2011 - June 2012

Week 7

So I decided last week to take the week off.  Not really the best way to keep on track of my weight loss, but either way it happened.  I had a doctors visit earlier in the week that led to some annoyances that kept me out of the gym.  Since I wasn't at the gym it gave me more time to go out to dinner.  So the next few weeks I'm expecting to keep putting up some red number while I try and get back on track.

This weekend is my friend Steve's wedding and I couldn't be more excited.  I have known Steve for 10 years now and even went to Vincennes with him.  Steve and his fiance Lauren have been together for a long time and I'm excited to see them finally get married.  In addition to the wedding there will of course be lots of food, open bar, and cake.  I'm expecting to pack on at least 2,000 calories while I'm there so this week I really have to cut my food down.

I am however really looking forward to hitting the gym tonight.  I'm doubt if a week off is enough to ruin my progress, but we'll find out tonight.  I ended the week prior squatting 225, and benching 150.  I'm really hoping I can recover back to those numbers quickly.

Want to indulge in some light reading this week?  Check out Lean Gains!

April 29 278     279.7
May 6   276.5  280.2
May 13  274    -
May 20  272.5  -
May 27  271

Week 5

Last week went excellent!  I ate very healthy and worked out everyday, that is until the weekend hit.  On Friday I made this amazing tropical salsa and of course along with all of the added sugar in the fruit, I ate a ton of carbs getting the salsa to my mouth in the form of tortilla chips.  Other than that we threw a mini party for some close friends where we partook in other non-health conscious things.  I kind of regret taking the weekend off since it's thrown my weight off drastically.  I weighed in Friday morning at 272 which was huge!  Meaning I had lost 7 lbs last week!  Too bad this morning (Tues) I weighed in at 280.  Somehow I managed to gain 8 lbs over the weekend.  I'm not buying it, scale.  So this week will be a rough week as I try and push myself to get back on track.  The rest of this month is going to be interesting considering for the next 3 weekend I have a bachelor party, and 2 weddings.

I've set some weight goals for myself, why not set some fitness goals as well?  I've been doing some online research, and although I don't want to be a cop or in the army, it wouldn't be a bad idea to train like one.  So the least physically required job that I could think of was police officer (no offense to any officers).  So after a quick Google search I was able to find the minimum requirements to become a South Bend Police Officer.  I'm going to start here, and work my way up.  The city requires I can jump 13.5 inches, do 24 sit ups in a minute, run 300 meters in 82 seconds, do 21 push-ups (no time limit), and clock an 18:56 1.5 mile run.

Well I ran the 1.5 miles today and hit a time of 20 mins almost on the dot, I also ran it on a treadmill.  For being over-weight and not used to running, I think I did alright.  My vertical jump last week was over 12 inches measured with a piece of printer paper and in dress shoes, not very reliable.  I can in fact do 21 push-ups, but I haven't tested the 300 meter run or the 24 sit ups yet.  As soon as I have a way to test the run I will post the results of that and the sit ups.  I'm just not feeling too energetic after the gym this morning to work out more.

The Army is a bit harder, but I'm sure I'll get onto more of that later after I conquer SBPD.  The Military in general has some guidelines they've posted as far as body fat content.  For the National Guard for my age group is below 26%, for the Army it's 22%.  Again I will post more when I can get past Police Dept.  Also this week marks a doctors visit, so we'll see what he has to say too.

http://www.in.gov/ilea/2338.htm
http://www.nationalguard.com/guard-basics/eligibility-requirements
http://www.military.com/military-fitness/army-fitness-requirements/army-basic-training-pft



April 29 278     279.7
May 6   276.5  280.2
May 13  274

Tropical Salsa

1 Mango, 1 Papaya, 1/2 Golden Pineapple, 5 Jalapeños (Seeded), 2 Poblano Peppers (Charred, Skinned, Seeded), 1 Bunch Cilantro, Juice of 1 Lime, 1 Red Onion