Day #110 - Getting Things Done Without Any Distractions

It is amazing how much work I can accomplish when I don't have anyone to interrupt me in the office. Don't get me wrong, I love interaction with other people more then anyone and I think I would go crazy if I didn't have anyone to talk to. But, there are just some days when I wish I could just be alone so I can focus on what has to get done at work. I have grown to love the weekends when I don't have anything scheduled to do. Now when I say I don't have anything scheduled, I mean I have absolutely nothing at all. Nothing to do for work and nothing to do at home, except for a few errands that need to be taken care of. So you can only imagine how great it is for me when I am one of the only people in the office on a Friday. Today started with a full house but by the time it reached 1:30 pm you could hear a pin drop in the hall way because everyone was off coaching their respected high school sports teams. And without all of the distractions, I was able to get what I needed to get done so Patty and I could do whatever we felt like tomorrow without having to worry about work at all!!

Keeping with the theme, I also love it some times when I am one of the only people in the gym. I usually try to get to the gym right after work because I like to get my workout done early in the evening so I can relax for the rest of the night. However, there are those days where I have to get a few things done personally and I can't get to the gym until a little later. By the way, one of the main reasons why I love being a member at a 24 hour gym. I can go whenever I want, if my schedule gets hectic during the day. Thank you Anytime Fitness, love you guys! Anyway, getting back to the story, I got into the gym a little late today (11pm) but that was fine by me because I was 1 of only 3 people there at the time. It is better for me when the gym is empty because my new cardio based workout routine calls for me to execute a lot of different exercises, one right after the other. And it is some times difficult when people are using the machine I need to use at the time. Like I said, I love interacting with other people, but I go to the gym get a good workout in without any distractions. But I still love all of you, of course! Feel free to talk to me as much as you want if you ever run into me!

When all is said and done, today was a quick and very productive day. I guess when you step back and think of it, everyone really wants their Fridays to go by quick and painless. I know I do because it leads to the weekend, my favorite part of every week! By the way, good luck to everyone this weekend with your football teams!

With that being said, let's get to the details of the day:

Meals of the Day (The Heavy Man - 38 Points)
(I am currently following the Weight Watchers Points System)

Breakfast - Egg whites with a serving of fat free shredded cheddar on 2 slices of Weight Watchers whole wheat bread = Points 3
Snacks During the Course  of the Day - 1 rice cake and 2 servings of whole wheat mini pretzel sticks = Points 5
Lunch - 1/2 rotisserie chicken with steamed vegetables, cinnamon apples, and a piece of cornbread = Points 24
Dinner - 2 grilled cheese sandwiches (All Weight Watchers Products) with a serving of baked potato chips = Points 6
Dessert - 1 Weight Watchers ice cream cone = Points 2

Total Points Eaten Today = 40 Points (2 points over my daily limit)

Exercise

Today I executed the weight lifting and strength training portion of my workout routine: Dumbbell Chest Press, Seated Row Straight Bar, and Leg Extensions (4 sets of each x 15 reps each), Flyes, Lateral Raises, and Cable Rope Hammer Curls (4 sets of each x 15 reps each), Straight Arm Push Downs, Rear Delt Flyes, and Leg Press (4 sets of each x 15 reps each) , and Crunches w/ 10lbs, Triceps Push Downs, and Dumbbell Side Bends (4 sets of each x 15 reps each). Tomorrow I will be doing cardio.

Day #110 - Weigh-In = 251.4 lbs

Day #110 Weigh-In

Day #110 Front Shot

Day #109 - Yet... Another Day on The Go

This morning's adventure, to apply for a passport, went pretty well. I have never had a passport before so I didn't really know what to expect. In order to be able to apply for an expedited passport, you have to schedule a meeting with a regional office. And being that the New York office was booked until next Monday, I decided to take the trip down to Philly. When I think of a meeting, I picture myself sitting in front of a customs agent, in a little cubicle, trying to impress this person so they would give me a passport. I was way off. Once I stepped inside the door, I was put through security, asked to stand in line, asked to show my paper work and proof of US Citizenship, asked to pay the fee, and asked what day I need the passport by. That my friends, was the entire process in a nut shell. I felt like I was on an assembly line for a half an hour and I was out the door before 9:00 am and my meeting was scheduled for 8:30 am. It was the easiest thing I ever applied for in my life. After I was done with the passport stuff, I had to rush back to work so my boss wouldn't be pissed that I missed half the day.

Being that we were on the road for a good part of the morning, Patty and I had to improvise with our meals for the day. We went directly from the hotel room to the regional passport office, and then from there to our office. So we really didn't have anything prepared for breakfast or lunch to take to work with us. I can honestly tell you that since the start of this mission, I have learned to adjust to situations just like this one pretty well. And by learning how to adjust, I have also learned how to build up my "willpower." Believe it or not, I have learned that adjusting to your surroundings,especially when dealing with eating a meal, also helps to develop and build up "willpower." I am now able to go just about anywhere for a meal and have a much better chance of resisting any temptations then I would have about a month ago. Now, I am not saying that I am not tempted at all, because I am. However, because I have had a ton of practice adjusting my meals on the fly to make sure I eat healthy, it has caused me to build up my "willpower" tremendously. Thus helping me to resist temptations a lot more now, then I was able to in the past. To give you an example, I am tempted every night to eat another ice cream cone before I go to bed. However, since I have developed a stronger "willpower", I convince myself that I don't need it and I end up going to bed without eating it. I go through this same process every night. If that is not "willpower", then I don't know what is. Anyway, we had a successful healthy day yet again and I can't wait to see what tomorrow brings.

With that being said, let's get to the details of the day:

Meals of the Day (The Heavy Man - 38 Points)
(I am currently following the Weight Watchers Points System)

Breakfast - Egg whites on a whole wheat bagel with a slice of american cheese = Points 9
Snacks During the Course of the Day - 2 servings of whole wheat mini pretzel sticks = Points 4
Lunch - 6" tuna on whole wheat sub with a slice of american cheese, a serving of baked potato chips, and a serving of apple slices (Subway) = Points 15
Dinner - Steamed chicken with a serving of steamed broccoli and brown rice = Points 8
Dessert - 1 Weight Watchers ice cream cone = Points 2

Total Points Eaten Today = 38 Points

Exercise

Today I ran for 30 mins on the elliptical machine at different resistance levels. Tomorrow I will be executing the weight lifting and strength training portion of my workout routine.

Day #109 - Weigh - In = 252.0 lbs (Still at 50 lbs lost!)

Day #109 Weigh-In

Day #109 Front Shot

Day #108 - The Heavy Man, Travel Series Part 6b / The Number 50!

I hope you all had a great day today. I am currently writing to you from a small town right outside Philadelphia, PA and I am back again with part 6 of The Heavy Man, Travel Series. Well, maybe a mini travel series because I am only here for 1 night.  But none the less, I still have my camera and my scale on the road with me. I am preparing for a trip to Canada that will take place in a week and a half.  I am going to be running a series of events, up there, that will be tied into my big event in Charleston, SC that will be happening in Dec. Anyway, I need my passport and I have been instructed, by the nice people who deal with developing passports, that I have to visit a regional passport office in order to receive it in such a short amount of time. The New York City office was booked until Monday and I didn't want to wait that long, so I decided to take a trip to visit the office in Philly because they had a ton of meeting times available. What lengths I will go through in order to get the job done. I think the most difficult part of this entire trip is to avoid the Philly Cheese Steak Sandwiches down here. Wish me luck with both the passport meeting and resisting the cheese steaks.

The Number 50!

Yesterday I mentioned that I am currently chasing the next milestone for my mission. And guess what my friends........ I caught it!! I was extremely excited this morning to wake up, roll out of bed, and head to the scale. As I walked into the living room where my scale resides within my apartment, I couldn't tell if I was more anxious, excited, or a little nervous. I have been doing so well since I switched up my workout routine and I was hoping that today would be the day that I made it to the next step of my mission. So, like I always do in the morning, I walked up to the scale, took off my clothes, took a deep breath, and stepped up. And all that I hoped would happen, actually came true! I weighed in at 251.2 lbs, bringing my official weight loss amount to 50.8 lbs since the start of my mission, 108 days ago!

It always feels good when I get positive results out of working hard and having a lot of determination. But it feels even more amazing when I set out to achieve a goal and I actually reach it. And that is exactly what happened this morning. One of my personal goals of this mission was to loose at least 50 lbs. And now that I have reached it, I can move onto the next goal. I can honestly say that it is an honor to share this achievement with all of you. You all constantly send much needed support, motivation, and inspiration my way. All I can say is, on to the next goal!

With that being said, let's get to the details of the day:

Meals of the Day (The Heavy Man - 38 Points)
(I am currently following the Weight Watchers Points System)

Breakfast - Egg whites with a slice of american cheese on a multigrain bagel = Points 9
Snacks During the Course of the Day - 2 servings of whole wheat pretzel sticks = Points 4
Early Afternoon - 1 serving of homemade Two Cheese Vegetable Lasagna (Weight Watchers Recipe) = Points 6
Late Afternoon - 1 serving of homemade Two Cheese Vegetable Lasagna (Weight Watchers Recipe) = Points 6
Dinner - 1 piece of grilled chicken with 1 1/2 servings of whole wheat pasta with parmesan cheese = Points 10
Dessert - 1 Weight Watchers ice cream cone = Points 2

Total Points Eaten Today = 37 Points (1 point under my daily limit)

Exercise

Today I executed my weight lifting and strength training portion of my workout routine: Incline Dumbbell Press, Rear Delt Flyes, and Alternating Dumbbell Hammer Curls (4 sets each x 15 reps each), Lat Pull Downs, Dumbbell Shoulder Press, and Side Lunges (4 sets each x 15 reps each), Cable Flyes, Seated Row with Short Bar, and Leg Extensions (4 sets each x 15 reps each), and Cable Chops, Skull Crushers, and Dumbbell Side Bends (4 sets each x 15 reps each). Tomorrow I will be doing cardio.

Day #108 - Weigh-In = 251.2 lbs

Day #108 Weigh-In



Day #108 Front Shot





Day #107 - Chasing Another Milestone

I had a much better day today then I did yesterday at work. I woke up this morning determined to not let what happened yesterday ruin my today. But I have to be honest with you all, my day started off good even before I left for work. And I attribute my good morning to the positive results I have been getting from my new cardio based workout routine. I have mentioned it before and I will say it again, I am happy about how serious I have been taking my mission. I have been putting 100% into getting healthier and losing fat, that I have actually changed my life around for the better. Taking the time to research and to understand what is best for me has really paid off in the last few months.

Anyway, since I have started my new workout routine, I have been able to break through the plateau I was stuck in. I also found out last night, after doing my body measurements, that I actually lost another inch around my waist as well. However, the thing that has me pumped up the most is that I weighed in this morning at 252.4 lbs. This means that I am so close to reaching another milestone for my mission. As of this morning, I am .4 of a pound from officially reaching 50 lbs lost, since Day #1!!! I can't even describe how excited I am to be at this point in my mission. If you were to ask me on Day #1 if I thought I would ever make it to this point, I would have said no. But now if you were to ask me today, if I would be able to make it until my wedding day, I would say I am 100% sure that I will stick to this mission until that day. I would even go out on the limb to say that I will stick to this mission and my new way of life forever.

Chasing this next milestone of 50 lbs lost seems so close. I actually can't wait to finish this blog and climb into bed because I want to see what I will weigh in at tomorrow morning. I find that setting these kind of goals is a big help with sticking to the mission. I actually visualize what I will look and physically feel like on the day of my wedding. All I can say is watch out to every guy that has ever graced the cover of a health or sexiest man alive magazine. There is nothing stopping me now!

With that being said, let's get to the details of the day:

Meals of the Day (The Heavy Man - 38 Points)
(I am currently following the Weight Watchers Points System)

Breakfast - 2 Eggo nutrigrain waffles, with an apple, a serving of Light'n Fit yogurt, and a serving of sugar = Points 5
Snack During the Course of the Day - 1 pear, 1 serving of mini whole wheat pretzel sticks, and 1 rice cake = Points 4
Lunch - 1/2 rotisserie chicken with a side of steamed mixed vegetables and cinnamon apples (Boston Market) = Points 20
Dinner - 1 serving of homemade Two Cheese Vegetable Lasagna (Weight Watchers Recipe) = Points 6
Dessert - 1 Weight Watchers ice cream bar = Points 2

Total Points Eaten Today = 37 Points (1 point under my daily limit)

Exercise

Today I ran on the elliptical for 40 mins, switching between different levels of resistance. Tomorrow I will be executing the weight lifting and strength training portion of my workout routine.

Day #107 - Weigh-In = 252.4 lbs

Day #107 Weigh-In



Day #107 Front Shot



Day #106 - Oh Monday...... Why Are You so Mean!!

It happens every Sunday night, I fear going to sleep because I will wake up in the morning and it will be Monday. Mondays are the worst at work because everything from the week before, you thought you had under control, ends up being wrong or not enough. And that always turns into having to do everything over again. Not to mention all of the new things that get added on top of that pile as well because it is a brand new week. As you can plainly see, today was a horrible Monday for me. However, I managed to stay on track with my mission, both eating and working out. I can't tell you how many times in the past I had resorted to pigging out every time I had a bad day. But not any more my friends.

I mentioned a few times in a couple of posts, whenever I get stressed or have a bad day, I take all of my anger out at the gym. And lucky for me today, my friend (the personal trainer) had extended my new cardio based workout routine by adding another set of exercises. I started off the first day by doing 2 sets of exercises and I am now up to doing 4. I can honestly tell you that by adding more exercises, it actually gets a lot harder to make it all the way through. I was feeling great after the first set of exercises was done.  I was also using some bottled up emotions, from the day at work, to get through it. After the second set was complete, I totally forgot why my day was so miserable to begin with. Once I got into the 3rd and 4th sets of exercises, I was struggling to finish and all my focus was on trying to complete the routine.  I barely made it through today and I don't think I have ever sweat so much during any cardio / weight lifting session. After my time at the gym was done, I actually felt a lot better and I couldn't wait to get home to eat dinner and relax.

I know that after I get a good few hours of sleep tonight, all will be forgotten pertaining to my horrible day at work and I will continue to move forward like I always do. I am so happy that bringing exercise and eating healthy back into my life has given me a different way to release stress and to calm down. Life is too short to be angry, especially with all of the crap I have to go through at work. Tomorrow is another day and I am sure that I will get things done like I usually do.

With that being said, let's get to the details of the day:

Meals of the Day (The Heavy Man - 38 Points)
(I am currently following the Weight Watchers Points System)

Breakfast - 4 rice cakes = Points 4
Snacks During the Course of the Day - 1 serving of Baked Tostitos Scoops with mango salsa and a serving of whole wheat pretzel sticks = Points 4
Early Afternoon - 1 serving of homemade Beef and Vegetable Cheese Casserole (Weight Watchers Recipe) = Points 7
Mid Afternoon - 1 serving of homemade Beef and Vegetable Cheese Casserole (Weight Watchers Recipe) = Points 7
Late Afternoon - 1 serving of homemade Beef and Vegetable Cheese Casserole (Weight Watchers Recipe) = Points 7
Dinner - 2 Boca veggie burgers on 2 slices of Weight Watchers whole wheat bread with shredded reduced fat mozzarella cheese = Points 6
Dessert - 1 Weight Watchers ice cream cone = Points 2

Total Points Eaten Today = 37 Points

Body Measurements

Chest- 45 inches (Lost a 1/4 inch since last Monday)
Waist (Around my stomach even with my belly button) - 46 1/4 inches (Lost 1 inch since last Monday)
Neck - 15 1/2 inches
Bicep (Not Flexed) - 14 1/4 inches (Lost 1 inch since last Monday)
Bicep (Flexed) - 16 3/4 inches (Lost a 1/4 inch since last Monday)
Upper Leg - 26 1/2 inches (Lost 2 inches since last Monday)
Lower Leg (Calf) - 16 1/2 inches (Lost 1/2 an inch since last Monday)

Exercise

Today I executed the weight lifting and strength training portion of my workout routine: Close Grip Lat Pull Down, Lateral Raises, and Leg Pres (4 sets of each x 15 reps each), Dumbbell Press, Seated Row, and Leg Extensions (4 sets of each x 15 reps each), Flyes, Rear Delt Fly, and Tricep Push Downs (4 sets of each x 15 reps each), and Stability Ball Crunches, Bicep Hammer Curls, and Planks (4 sets of each x 15 reps each). Tomorrow I will be doing cardio.

Day #106 - Weigh-In = 253.8 lbs

Day #106 Weigh-In

Day #106 Front Shot

Day #105 - The Weekend is Over, Time to Get Back to Business

This weekend was excatly what I needed to get my mind off of everything stressfull that is tied into my job. I watched a ton of football, I hung out with friends and family, and I shut myself away from everything having to do with work. The big push to get everything accomplished for my big event down in Charleston, will be starting tomorrow. So in order to get myself both mentally and physically prepared, I made it a point to not even think about what has to get done for work, at all this weekend. I think it will pay off for me in the long run. However, I know one thing is for certain, this is going to be a long three months coming up.

Today I visited my mother and step father for our traditional get together, to celebrate the first official weekend of the new NFL season. My mother had called me yesterday to ask, if what she was cooking, would be good for my diet. It turns out that she went out of her way to print out a meatloaf recipe from Weight Watchers! I thought it was very awesome for her to do that. She used to make us meatloaf all the time when we were little and it was definitley one of my favorites meals that she made. So going into it, already knew it was going to be awesome because if anyone could pull off a healthier version of meatloaf, it would be her. And it was amazing!!

The day went by really quickly because I enjoy watching football with my mom and step father. And we all know that, time flies when you are having fun. Patty and I ended up leaving around 6:30pm to head home because we have to get up early in the morning for work. While on our way home, I decided that I wasn't going to go to the gym today because I had worked out everyday this past week and I felt that my body needed a rest. I also decided that I was going to treat Patty to pizza for dinner tonight as well. I am going to start trying to incorporate at least one unhealthy meal a week to keep myself honest. This also serves to help control my cravings for junk food because after every time I eat an unhealthy meal, my stomach gets a little upset and I can't wait to be eating healthy again the next day. So, eating healthy the whole day and having the bad meal for dinner worked out perfectly today. My stomach is feeling it and I am so glad that I am not eating crappy everyday any more. Not to mention, my mother sent us home with the leftover meatloaf and we also still have 2 servings of the Beef and Vegetable Cheese Casserole from last night, so lunch is all set for tomorrow.

With that being said, let's get to the details of the day:

Meals of the Day (The Heavy Man - 38 Points)
(I am currently following the Weight Watchers Points System)

Early Afternoon  - 1 serving of Beef and Vegetable Cheese Casserole (Weight Watchers Recipe) =
Mid Afternoon - 1 serving of homemade Meatloaf (Weight Watchers Recipe), with greem beans, and baked potatoes
Late Afternoon - 1 serving of homemade Meatloaf (Weight Watchers Recipe), with greem beans, and baked potatoes
Dinner - 2 slices of pizza

* I didn't keep my points today because of the unhealthy meal I had for dinner. I went way over my daily points limit and I try to do that 1 day a week to help control my junk food cravings. It has been working so far.

Exercise

I took the day off from the gym to rest my body. It is bad to over work your body because it could hurt your progress, if you are executing a weight loss program. I will be back on track again tomorrow.

Day #105 - Weigh-In = 253.4 lbs

Day #105 Weigh-In

Day #105 Front Shot

Day #104 - What A Great Day To Relax

I rarely get a chance to actually take some time to relax and do nothing. Many of you may know by now that I am a workaholic and with my crazy work schedule, I am constantly on the go. And when I am not wrapped up in work, I am running around trying to keep my personal life in check. However, I decided yesterday that I was going to do absolutely nothing today but watch football, eat healthy, and workout. And let me tell you, it was glorious. Granted I was woken up by a work call this morning at 8:00am and on Saturday no less, but I wasn't going to let that get in the way of fulfilling today's plan.

While relaxing on my couch today watching football, I was thinking of how the past week went. I started a new cardio based workout routine, got back to my normal healthy meal routine after a long holiday weekend, and of course I, some what, broke through the plateau I was stuck in for a week and a half. Not a bad week, if I do say so myself. However, I did notice one new pattern that developed this week that I was not aiming for. I noticed that I have been feeling hungrier during the day. And from what I can tell, this new found hunger started when I switched my exercise routine to a cardio based workout. I am not a 100% sure why this new routine has caused me to become hungrier but I do think it might have something to do with my metabolism.

From what I have learned in the past few months, cardio plays an important role in the weight loss process. Of course weight lifting is important as well but from what I can see, cardio gets the heart pumping more then weight lifting. And by getting the heart pumping, cardio also helps to boost your metabolism, which then cause the fat mass to burn more as well. If I am wrong with this assumption, please comment and help me understand it a little more, I am still learning as I go. I can tell you this though, since I switched my workout to a cardio based routine with weight lifting incorporated, I am sweating a whole lot more than if I was just straight up weight lifting. Anyway, since my hunger has increased, I am trying to control it with eating more fruits and 1 point snacks between my main meals. It seems to be working so far.

With that being said, let's get to the details of the day:

Meals of the Day (The Heavy Man - 38 Points)
(I am currently following the Weight Watchers Points System)

Early Afternoon - 1 piece of baked chicken, 1 serving of egg noodles with parmesan cheese, and 3 reduced fat crescent rolls = Points 11
Snacks During the Course of the Day - 1 pear, 1 Weight Watchers ice cream cone, and 2 reduced fat crescent rolls = Points 5
Mid Afternoon - 2 slices of Weight Watchers whole wheat bread with a serving of reduced fat shredded mozzarella cheese = Points 3
Late Afternoon - 1 Boca veggie burger with a serving of reduced fat shredded mozzarella cheese on 2 slices of Weight Watchers whole wheat bread and a pear = Points 6
Dinner - 1 serving of Beef and Vegetable Cheese Casserole (Weight Watchers Recipe) = Points 7
Dessert  - 1 Weight Watchers ice cream cone = Points 2

Total Points Eaten Today = 34 Points (4 points under my daily limit)

Exercise

Today I executed the weight lifting and strength portion of my new routine: Dumbbell Press, Lat Pull Down, and Dumbbell Curl (4 sets of each x 15 reps each), Stability Ball Squats, Lateral Raises, and Crunches (4 sets of each x 15 reps each), and Flyes, Straight Arm Push Downs, and Leg Extensions (4 sets of each x 15 reps each). Tomorrow I will be doing cardio.

Day #104 - Weigh- In = 253.8 lbs

Day #104 Weigh-In

Day #104 Front Shot