I also recently celebrated my birthday, which apparently for some reason thought was code for “eat whatever and how much you want.” I ran the gamut this week – meatloaf and mashed potatoes, burgers, donuts, fries, wings – you name it, I scoffed it down. Oh and the beers and drinks. And after it all, I was more tired and sick to my stomach. Guess my body really isn’t cut out for the junk food fests anymore, which is a good thing. I’m definitely detoxing with some cleaner meals this week, starting with some salads and measured portions of healthy meals and snacks.

My gym definitely got free money over the past month. I really need to rekindle the strong relationship I had with it before. I loved it while I was there and working out, but I slipped and never got back into it. That changes this week.

For those of you who know me well, you know I can’t swim. Now that may come as a shock to most of you as I grew up in a community on the water for a significant portion of my life. I just never learned for a variety of reasons; my dad almost drowned in a pool after both legs cramped and he couldn’t surface, which prohibited my brother and I from learning to swim, and even when I tried to learn around age 5, I was terrible at it and never correctly taught. Fast forward to last year – my fiancée tried her best to teach a stubborn student with limited success. At least she taught me how to float!

So being just stubborn enough to want to learn, I contacted a close friend’s dad to see if he could help me over this life hurdle. He happily agreed, and I’m glad he did. We’ve realized some great success so far to the point that I can go under water without holding my nose and pick things up off the bottom of the shallow end. I was really pumped after Saturday’s session, and I’m looking forward to more. And for those adults out there that don’t know how to swim – it’s never too late to learn. Lots of communities offer adult swim lessons, which if you don’t have someone who can teach you one on one, provides a great option.

Finally, I would be remiss if I didn’t mention that the hometown Jonesport-Beals Royals took home the state championship and put the 10^th boys’ basketball gold ball in the trophy case. Very proud of them.

Back on the horse to finish strong in Dr. Lou’s Weight Loss Challenge and continue my adventure to getting healthy! I’ll check in with the weight update next week.

See, this past week was not only school break, but also high school basketball tournament week in Bangor for Eastern Maine classes B, C & D. For those who don’t know, my hometown is Jonesport,  the Jonesport in Jonesport-Beals High School. More often than not, people who ask where I’m from will follow-up with, “So where exactly is that?” to which I respond with, “hmm…probably ’bout an hour past Bah Hahbah and 30 or so minutes before Machias” as the “Downeast” accent provides the necessary twang for the conversation.

If you know anything about JBHS or the Royals at all, you know that we like to spend February break in Bangor at the tournament. This week was no different. Without a doubt, each Royals game provided a well-packed sea of blue shirted fans cheering from warmups to the final buzzer and beyond. Let me take a step back here and say that Bangor isn’t the only place that the fan congregation travels to; no, in fact, many of the same faces hit every home and away game, and a lot of them aren’t there to follow just their son, nephew, grandson or cousin. The roots of the game run very deep in our small communities of Jonesport and Beals and that passes along from generation to generation.

I can tell you, this generation has a special group of young men that have turned serious heads through this season. My view of the regular season came through viewing games through my father’s eyes with him passing on the highlight reel via phone or e-mail. I’ve been able to carve out the time to listen to their games on the radio online or sit down and watch them on TV, and now I can see exactly the pictures that Dad has painted for me all season. They played hard from start to finish and very well thus far. Only one hurdle left to clear – facing Forest Hills in Augusta. The last time the Royals played in Augusta, the game produced the highest scoring state game in HISTORY, with a combined total of 188 points, even though we came out on the losing side of that 96-92 battle.

This time around, I’m hoping for a much better result for our hometown team, and without question I’ll be there to witness it first hand. But no matter the outcome, this generation’s Royals have nothing to be ashamed of and a lot to be proud of. They’ve given 100%, had fun and made their towns proud of their accomplishments. While  my mail comes to Cape Elizabeth and that’s where the roof over my head is, my heart will always be where I come from, and I’ll always be a Royal.

Weight Loss: -7
Total to Date: 24.5 

For some reason, this week seemed extremely long. I felt like I ran the gamut of eating, from having top notch days of calculating and hitting my goals to letting go and having an extra slice of pizza or not tracking anything.

We spent the weekend in my hometown to celebrate my Gram’s 90th birthday and also my dad’s birthday (which happens to be today, so if you’re reading this, happy birthday dad!). Needless to say, it was a fun, food-filled weekend. I felt like I made some relatively good choices, but at times I knew I wasn’t. Pick your battles.

As for the rest of the week, things went fairly well. There was another round of chili (and I don’t think I can duplicate that recipe) and we splurged a little for Valentine’s day.

I really need to go to the gym. I didn’t see the interior of that place at all last week. Time to stop making excuses and get back there. It plays a major role in what I eat as I tend to pay attention more after a workout. Dinnertime is where I tend to over eat, so hitting the gym first will make an impact.

Weight Loss:  +2.5
Total to Date: -17.5

We also decided that for lunches we’d whip up a crockpot chili that would last us the rest of the week as well. I’ve gotta tell you, he makes a killer chili with ground turkey and chicken sausage. Healthy, spicy and delicious. Once I find out what his secret is, I’ll post it on here. Then again, he may never give it up!

I’d monitored my weight to see how I was progressing throughout the week, and it went really well. I actually only went to the gym once this week for a variety of bad excuses, but it didn’t hurt my overall weight loss this week.

On another note, I did find out I wasn’t selected for what I thought would be the next step in a career path I’d chosen. Instead of getting discouraged and either pigging out or boozing, I decided to sit down and write out a plan for myself to reach my goal in a different way. Fortunately, I’ve been blessed with a great network of professional and personal contacts that always seem to be at the ready when I give them a call or send an e-mail. Certainly the end of this story isn’t written, but I hope it resolves itself in the coming months.

And I think in Week 6, it really hit me – Dr. Lou isn’t trying to get us to just participate in a weight loss challenge; he wants us to take an active role in good eating and exercise habits for ourselves. I realized that I’ve been working at this for about a month and a half now, and I feel that I’m making better decisions and it reflects in weight loss and overall mental and physical health.

This is the marathon of life; there isn’t any tape to break crossing the finish line, because there isn’t a true finish line (well, I guess death would be the metaphorical finish line). I’ve just always looked for a finish line when it came to diet and exercise. Flipping the mental switch will be a huge long-term help.

Ok, I’ll get off my philosophical soap box now. But all in all, I’d sum it up as a solid week.

Monday AM update: Really pumped about a double digit loss this week! Hoping this is the breakthrough.

Weight Loss: -10.5
Loss to Date: 20

1)      Not gone out;
2)      Grazed on some veggies and watched out for high calorie dips and apps;
3)      Drank only a couple of beers and mixed in plenty of water in between beers.

Instead, I went out, feasted and paid the piper dearly this past week. After flirting with disaster in Week 4, I realized disaster in a big way this week with a GAIN of 5 pounds! Without question, I earned it. The number on the scale wasn’t at all surprising.

Reality is, I’ve been on this crash course for about three weeks, and there isn’t a defensible excuse for it. I’ve spent too much unnecessary focus on career, laying awake at night wondering who I’ll hear from next, playing out all of the scenarios in my head of what may or may not happen, and worrying about what I’ll do if I hear a ” no.”

I’m done worrying about it. If it were meant to happen, then it will. I’m a firm believer that you are where you are supposed to be at any given time in your life. Time to push those thoughts out of my head and get some much needed restful sleep.

Hey, but there is some good news in all of this – the gym has been going along quite steadily! I’ve increased my weight training per the guidelines that were set out in the program and I’m finding that I’m getting more in sync in cardio kick-boxing.

So this week it’s time to focus up, stop worrying about what’s out of my control and stop binge eating and drinking like it’s the last party I’ll ever attend. I also need to re-commit to tracking what I eat. If I’d written down everything I consumed last week, I don’t think I would’ve done nearly as much damage as I did.

It’s been just over a month of this journey and it has definitely had its highs and lows. All in all, a great life experience. I will say that the support and encouragement has been absolutely amazing which I truly appreciate and am extremely grateful for.

Bring it on Week 6!

Weight loss: +5 (ouch!)
Total loss to date:  9.5

I can’t justify what I did last week. Not controlling portions, eating things that were out of my normal nutritional values and simply lacking any self-control blew things up in a big way in Week 4. I’m confident that I gained weight, which certainly doesn’t help the effort. To get back on track, we sat down and planned our meals carefully for the week and I did the grocery shopping tonight. I felt by doing that and making the grocery store choices gave me my willpower back.

In an effort to provide some variety in workouts, I’m going to try to mix up my cardio on non-weight lifting days at the gym. Kudos to my pal Lonnie for giving me some ideas to shake things up and keep it fresh in the workout department. I’m hoping my swim coach will be ready to go this week and we can get in the pool as well.

Honestly, my head has been out of the weight loss game for a couple of weeks. I’ve been distracted by my career and recent developments that have occurred. More to come in this department, but it is something that’s been at the forefront of my mind for a while. Hopefully the details will sort themselves soon so I can put my drive and passion behind the physical and nutritional portion of my life.

This is a shortened update as later this week I’ll be adding a “Superbowl Eating” post to give some ideas of how to navigate a Superbowl party you’ll be attending or hosting. Go Pats!

Monday morning edit: I somehow lost .5, which is a miracle unto itself. That was a confidence boost this morning for sure.

Weight Loss: .5
Loss to Date: 14.5

This week’s recipe comes from Free WW Recipes via Pinterest. When I started preparing the lasagna, I was a bit skeptical. The sauce seemed thin. There didn’t seem to be a lot of chicken. There’s no way all of these ingredients could fill a 9×13 pan. Well, all of those thoughts quickly vanished as soon as I pulled the finished product from the oven. Looked and smelled great, and tasted even better. Give it a shot!

Ingredients:

12 Whole Wheat Lasagna Noodles, uncooked
1 lb. Skinless Chicken Breast, cubed
3 Cups Hunt’s Four Cheese Spaghetti Sauce
1 Cup Very Mild Buffalo Wing Sauce
1 1/2 Cups Water
15 oz. Nonfat Ricotta Cheese
1/2 Cup Egg Substitute
9 Slices 2% Pepperjack Cheese

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Spray skillet with nonstick cooking spray. Cook chicken over medium high heat for 4 minutes or until almost done. Stir in sauces and water. In a small bowl, combine ricotta cheese and egg substitute.

Spray a 9X13 pan with nonstick cooking spray. Spread 1 Cup of sauce in the bottom of pan. Arrange 4 noodles over the sauce. Spread more sauce, then a layer of ricotta mixture. Add another layer of sauce, and repeat the whole process until you end with a layer of sauce. Cover and bake 70 minutes. Uncover and place cheese slices on top, then bake for another 15 minutes uncovered. Let stand 10-15 minutes before serving.

Makes 9 Equal Servings

Nutritional Info Per Serving: 285 Calories; 4g Fat; 29g Protein; 31g Carbohydrate; 5g Dietary Fiber; Points Plus+ 7

Link: www.free-ww-recipes.com/buffalo-chicken-lasagna.html

Week three brought me back to reality. I know not every week was going to be as great as the first two (dropping six and five, respectively), but I was hoping that I wouldn’t have an off week for the first month or so. Well, it happened. Calories slipped through the cracks, my week was slightly more social in nature due to some networking meetings (which by the way were excellent, but meeting those contacts in bars probably wasn’t my best play) and we weren’t as steadfast at home in planning our weekly meals.

As I mentioned in my first post, I’m not going to dwell on the missteps I took in the past. I’m going regain focus and begin this  week fresh and more prepared than I was previously. This isn’t just a week to week process – the overall goal is to lead a healthier lifestyle, not just make the change until you get to where you want to go, then reach your goal, then stop at the nearest Burger King. Discouragement is also not an option. Getting bummed about a crappy week doesn’t bode well for the next week. Move on, nothing to see here.

Outside of eating, I did have a good run at the gym. Four out of seven days once again with a Saturday snowshoe adventure mixed in, which was much better than my first experience. Yesterday at the gym really boosted my confidence in my workout experience. I jogged for a whole minute on a treadmill without stopping. Yes, I realize to some that may be a warmup for a 10k, but to me, this is progress. I’m not sure I’d actually accomplished that feat since high school. Weight lifting was excellent again, and it also made me feel great adding more pounds onto the stacks for each exercise.

So I ask you, loyal readers, what do you do to regain focus in your lives? It doesn’t have to be weight loss specific, but how do you collect yourself and get back on the bus?

Thanks again for reading, and keep an eye out for a new feature I’ll be rolling out on Wednesdays highlighting a healthy recipe I’ve tried or will be experimenting during the week.

This Week: 3
Total to Date: 14

This week, I went back to Man Club, a group of friends that normally gather every Thursday night to catch up over the week that was while enjoying a few beers and dinner. This has been an event I’ve attended regularly for about five years. To provide some perspective on what my meals used to consist of, I actually took the time to calculate what I was eating and drinking over the course of one evening and the numbers were astounding. To my estimates, I was eating and drinking OVER 3,000 CALORIES IN ONE MEAL. That’s more than an average person’s diet for one day. Poor meal choices combined with a ton of empty calories in beer made it a dietician’s nightmare and contributed heavily (no pun intended) to my overall weight gain.

As part of my healthy goals set, I decided to cut back my Thursday night trips to every other week. I also carefully evaluated what I would be eating. This week, I had two Guinness draughts, roughly two cups of popcorn, a burger with a lettuce wrap (I got heckled for a good chunk of our time there) and a side salad. Fortunately, my hecklers were also my support group, as they enjoyed grilled chicken wraps and salads as well. The bar was super accommodating and graciously accepted our nutritional changes. I walked away confident that I can continue to eat well even in a guy’s night setting.

My second opportunity for pig out occurred Saturday night at a friend’s birthday party. This was my first situation since beginning where I’d be faced with platters of food for “grazing” throughout the evening. My support group was spectacular again and I found that a lot of friends are making strides to eat healthier. There were a variety of healthy dishes available which was very encouraging. I did have two slices of pizza, but mainly stuck with the healthier fare. I did pass on the birthday cake and toothpicked a few strawberries to soothe my sweet tooth. I brought beer (MGD 64) but didn’t drink any of them.

Overall, I felt a sense of accomplishment in both of those situations. We have a very social group of friends, so this won’t be the last time I face situations like those listed above. If anything, those moments will only increase as we approach spring. Mentally I know now I have what it takes to make the right choices in those situations. If you can make a few sacrifices in those situations and be mindful of what you do eat and drink, you can own social eating!

For exercise this week, I took Saturday took my workout outdoor and did some snowshoeing. I didn’t realize what an amazing workout it truly is. After returning home, I couldn’t believe that I’d nearly sweat completely through two shirts.  Hopefully we’ll get some better snow for it in the next few weeks. Outside of that, I hit the gym with only two days of rest, falling on Friday and Sunday again. The two days of weight training and three days of cardio are still working excellent. The pool in South Portland has re-opened, so here’s hoping I can get in soon for a different kind of workout.

I’m continually feeling better and my aches and pains from exercise aren’t as bothersome. Building serious momentum!

This weeks loss: 5
Total to date: 11

How do you deal with social eating? Leave your advice below!

Week 1 was pretty interesting. We started using the Weight Watchers Points Plus system, which makes for counting things simpler than tracking every calorie. I was definitely surprised in how much of some items I could have (apparently I had never actually eaten a full serving size of some things) and what was limited (so, that’s what an ounce of pepperoni looks like?). Starting out, I wasn’t even close to reaching the total points I needed to eat in a day. After some minor adjustments to my eating, we were on track.

One issue I did have on the eating side and probably will continue to do so is gauging how much things are worth. For example, trying to figure out what an italian sausage at Fenway Park was sort of a frustrating task, but I know that over time I’ll be able to calculate without searching the internet roughly what I’m eating for points.

On the exercise front, I was very happy with my week. I hit the gym five out of seven days, and really feel like I accomplished something. I tried spin class (future classes may have to wait until I drop a few more lbs), cardio kick-boxing (which was pretty fun) and even planned out the next three months of a weight lifting program that I will ramp up slowly over the next three months. All in all, a great gym experience, and I can’t wait for more.

For our home weight loss “competition,” I weighed in this morning to a loss of six lbs. Of course, I was hoping for about ten, but I’ll certainly take the six and run with it. Continued effort this week focusing on eating right and maintaining my gym schedule.

Until next week…