More BAD than good...

And so it goes, just when I think I got my eating routine down I slip up. It started out great. Dropped the kids off at school, took my final exam that I've been stressing over (and passed ;0), avoided all the fast food on the way back home and then I walked in the house. Since I had the day off work and knew I'd be home alone, I knew there would be temptation to eat bad out of habit/boredom/etc. I did not realize that I would hold strong until 11am and then have a ferocious inner beast take control and ravage the kitchen. In my almost blacked out state of eating through the day, I have surely hurt the progress made over the last 4 days. Just for the sake of documenting my self destruction, let me list the no-no foods that I managed to sniff out and consume: chocolate chip ice cream (with peanut butter on top), one plain bagel w/cream cheese, way too many pistachios and two sandwiches for dinner. Shame, disappointment and general ticked offness (yes, that's not a word, but it fits) sums up my mood.

As stated previously, this won't keep me from moving forward. I got a new work weight loss contest starting tomorrow and the town's weight loss contest begins for me Saturday. There will be a lot of motivation to keep on track, but today certainly was a setback. That's about all I got tonight. I know it will be better tomorrow and hopefully my positive, confident demeanor will return by then. Take care friends.

Mike

Good outweighed the bad...

This beautiful day led us to Cumberland Falls to spend a little over an hour walking around the park. Unfortunately, I am still too out of shape to attempt the trails, but I got plenty of exercise just walking the paths and stairs. A big part of us going there is the gift shop. Both Chloe and her brother like seeing what unique items they have. They also usually like to get some rock candy. At 63 calories and 12g of sugar, it really isn't the worst thing Chloe could grab as a treat as long as she just got one. They usually end up thrown out before ever fully consumed anyway. Unfortunately, Chloe broke bad and chose the heaping soft serve ice cream cone at the snack bar across the path. The nudging and disapproving looks I threw at her (at her request I remind you) were completely ignored. Than the guilt set in about halfway. As I sat with my diet Ale81 soda, Chloe began to realize that ice cream was not gonna get her to the goals she has set. I was so proud when she chucked the remaining cone in the trash...as did Austin.

After we left the Falls, we went to our town's walking path near downtown. We proceeded to walk an additional 2 miles on top of the 1 mile at the falls. Sure we felt like we were going to succumb to the heat and fatigue, but we feel like a million bucks right now! For dinner I fixed us taco soup, which was more like chili to me, from a weight watcher recipe online. It is awesome and very good for you without tasting very good for you. The link to the recipe is below.

As my post title says, the good things we did today far outweighed the bad. This weight loss thing is not easy for us, but we keep fighting no matter the missteps along the way. I cannot guarantee in an hour I won't eat something stupid...but I can guarantee that I will pick up the pieces and keep heading to my goal if I do. One day (or in my case, one hour) at a time is the only way to succeed. My past failures further reinforce that motto. Don't hesitate to leave a comment, we would love to see some feedback. Hopefully if you are on a weight loss journey you will get with us and we can all help each other out!

Mike

Recipe link for Taco Soup WW style: http://www.food.com/recipe/weight-watchers-low-fat-taco-soup-157732

We are back!

Been way too long, but the blog is alive and well. School is winding down for both of us, so the long absences of posting are over.

Here is the jist of whats been going on:

For every day of healthy eating, we had about 1 1/2 days of eating crap. Only one day of exercise and did not drink our water enough. Tuesday 5/1, we weigh in to see our 3/5 - 5/1 results. Right now I am about 7 pounds down, but Chloe hasn't weighed.

Today I completely took hold of new found motivation that flared up two days ago. After sitting with my mom for the 80th time at our local hospital Wednesday (infection, she'll be okay, enough on that), I felt I was looking at my future. She is a diabetic, has heart disease and hypertension, had a strok, cancer, heart stints, double bypass, eye surgeries, neurapothy and countless infections and muscle/joint issues. It is by God's grace that she heals up farely decent and still is self sufficient.

I could easily have these same problems if I follow the same path. With my weight though, an early death is more likely.

So today, I recommitted to eating veggies, fruits, lean meats and swearing off junk, fried foods and sugar filled foods. The kids and I went for a little over 1 mile walk to start a fitness regimen into our plans.

Chloe hasn't quite rekindled the same drive to get back on track. After some negativity was vented from her, she conceded she too needed to be back on track. She told me I have to keep her on track and encourage/scold her when needed. I let her know that works both ways.

On May 5th We are joining a "Biggest Loser" type contest our town is hosting. It runs through 8/11 and person with highest % lost wins $1000. My prize will be losing weight. I will also be in another work contest and will actually do my best this time.

So that is the skinny on where we have been and where we are. Stay tuned to see where all that is taking us. Take care and talk to you soon.

Mike