December 12

I doubt that I've ever gone on a vacation and lost weight -- until now!
I have to admit, I was a little hesitant about stepping on the scale this morning. Although I have been pretty good on the food part over the past two weeks, I have had quite a bit more liquid calories in the form of craft beer. I'm guessing that all of the walking and climbing hills and stairs helped to keep everything in balance.

This morning's unlikely weigh in was 234. That's -4 pounds from my pre-travel weight and -28 pounds from my August 1st high of 262. Yay, me!

I'm really liking the stuff I'm re-reading in The Abs Diet, and remembering why I was so successful the first time I read it. As in Eat to Live, calorie counting isn't a thing. Eating the right foods tends to limit your calorie consumption by itself. The Abs Diet does have an emphasis on exercise that isn't in many "diet" books, but I'm certain you would lose weight just following the recommended changes in eating habits.

Okay, back to real life.

John

November 23, No Excuses

One week left in the month of November!
Yesterday was a good diet day. I'm really finding that eating more plant based stuff -- fruit, beans, raw veggies -- makes eating fewer calories so much easier. I do need to consciously add more veggies into the day and limit the nuts and seeds because of the high fat content. Overall, I've done pretty well at restricting the processed grains from breads, pasta and white rice. I've had a few sandwiches, enjoyed some pasta, and made fried rice, but as a rule -- most days have been free of the lower nutrient, processed carbs. I've also restricted most dairy by switching to a milk substitute and forgoing the cheese when I think of it.
And I've really restricted beer (I think I've had two this month). Beer and weightloss don't go together very well.

I'm not hard and fast on not eating (or drinking) anything in particular. I'm just being more aware of how it affects me and deciding if it's okay in that specific circumstance. I'm minus eight pounds for the first three weeks of November and hoping to keep pace through the Thanksgiving holiday. 

Side note: The MyFitnesPal app that I use adds in additional food calories for calories burned during tracked exercises like walking, running, cycling, etc. Rather than using those exercise calories to add to my intake as I have in the past, I think I'll just count them as additional calories burned moving forward. 

Exercise wise -- I'm doing better and finding something daily in the way of actual exercise vs just being active. I think this is important for me as we enter into the winter months and my activity is much less than during warmer weather.

I've also started re-reading The Abs Diet by David Zinczenko. It's the book that got me started on my last minus sixty pound journey eight+ years ago.

November 15, No Excuses

I'm two weeks into No Excuse November and doing pretty well. I've continued to log foods daily and have had no problems coming in below calories. Increasing fruit, vegetables, and legumes while limiting meat, dairy, and processed grains has really helped with keeping a full, satisfied feeling and lower calorie count.

I'm also finding it easier to find daily time for some sort of exercise, even if it's only 15 or 20 minutes on the stationary bike. I've lost 11 pounds since October 22 when I decided to get serious and changed my eating habits.

The thing that always concerns me is wondering if this is something that I can do as a lifestyle change. If you've followed my journey for long, you know I've been up and down and up again with weight swings that have varied by nearly 70 pounds. I really think can keep up with a more plant-based diet as a way of life. 
I am not going all in on Dr. Fuhrmann's Eat to Live diet. I'm not doing his hard-core 6 week induction diet, and I probably won't completely eliminate dairy, nor limit meat to the extent he recommends. I'm not cutting out coffee, nor do I want to feel bad about an occasional beer, bourbon, or tequila. But I do think I'll find a place in between the way I was eating and his plan that will work as a lifestyle eating plan that will be nutritious and healthy and doable for me.

Many years ago an old friend (80s) said to me, "John, if I had known I was going to live this long I would have taken better care of myself." 
Hopefully, it's not too late for me to take care of myself now so that my 80 year old self will not regret the health decisions of my 61 year old self.

John 

October 25, Day 34

A new beginning.
(How many times have I written/said that?)

Yesterday was good.
I took a short walk and stretched. It was the best muscle stretching I've done in a while.

Diet wise:
My new beginning was an intermittent fasting day which went well until I started eating. Actually, it wasn't a bad day. I did eat more than I expected to eat. I held off until 5:30 in the evening and basically ate just the one meal for the day. The meal did include dessert followed by an evening of visiting. By the time it was all said and done I had a coupe of more helpings of dessert, but I was still considerably below my daily caloric allowance. (Yes, I logged my food.)
Eating time was 5:30 to 11PM.

I think I'm going to find and reread The Abs Diet (or something like that). I read it and found it to be helpful in my last 60 pound loss adventure. It wasn't gimmicky, but had some good dieting (and exercise) stuff in it. I also added a book, Eat to Live, to my Kindle library. I'll let you know what I think of it.
All-in-all, yesterday was a good reset day--both for the mind and spirit as well as for the body.

John

Knowledge is Power

I know there is a lot of information available about dieting and fitness. Some of it is pretty good. Most of it is junk. Sorting through everything available can be a pretty daunting task. Over the years, I've read quite a bit about health and diet. I've found that most books and articles have a bit of truth surrounded by whatever hype is necessary to sell whatever product or program to make the writer rich. Books (and articles) that have no product nor program to pitch tend to be less deceptive.

It has been a lot of years since I first read the book on The Adkins' Diet. I found the science about insulin production and insulin resistance to be a real eye opener about how I was eating. I also found that the way the information was being used was far different from what Dr. Adkins was recommending in his book. Too often we think that if doing something is good, then doing it to extreme must be better. Not true. Dr. Atkins never intended for the induction phase of his diet to be extended indefinitely or until you reached your goal weight and then have the whole thing dumped until you put the weight back on and start again. High fiber, low impact fruits and vegetables were to be added back into your diet in a sustainable amount. Overall, I found it to be a very helpful book.

I never read Dr. Barry Sears' book on The Zone diet, but did read his book on Toxic Fat. Again, I found the science to be fascinating...and a bit scary! While I don't agree with all of his philosophies, I did gain a lot of information about how the human body reacts to foods, fats and other stimuli. These two books have been the basis for the diet that has become my way of eating, losing and maintaining a decent weight, and staying fit and healthy (at least healthier).

If you're not that into reading and are looking for a more simple read and simple solution to a sustainable diet, I'd recommend David Zinczenco's the Abs Diet. It's pretty much a guys' book on a better way to eat and exercise. There is also the Abs Diet for Women. There are companion books with quick meal guides and an Abs Diet Cookbook.

Several months ago, over on Out of My Hat, I wrote about how "diet" is a way of life rather than a temporary way of eating. Think of it this way--If you continue with your present diet and lifestyle, you'll continue to have your present health and body weight. If you want that to change, you have to change what you are eating and doing.

Simple steps.
For me, step one was to get some information.
Read.
Learn.
Do.

Be well,
John <><