In all things moderation

Over-doing, or being "gung ho" about it tends to burn me out quickly. If I get excited about something at the beginning, my excitement wanes quickly.

So when I dove into this blog, I was afraid that I would lay off fast, too. I was right. But here's an update for you all the same.

I started with adjusting my eating habits. Not "dieting". I will never "diet", but instead of a triple bacon cheese burger, I may order a single. Or instead of a burger, I'll order some baked or grilled chicken. Talisa and I have made a concious effort to not eat out as much and cook at home instead. I have stocked the freezer with fish, chicken, lean pork and beef. In the past few weeks I've eaten more fruit than usual.

Those changes alone have contributed to a 7 pound weight loss in the past 6 weeks. I am happy, but know that I will even out on losing weight that way, and it will not get me into "shape".

A few weekends ago I was doing some yard work. Simple stuff really - rake out the old straw in a flower bed, pull the weeds and creeping grass, put down some new plants, put in a 25ft border, lay weed cloth, and add new mulch. I took me, seriously, all day to do that little bit of work. I kept getting horribly winded and feeling like I was going to pass out. I would do some work, get winded, take a break longer than I worked, and start all over again.

It was ridiculous.

I realized that all the adjustments to eating habits in the world wouldn't make me able to work in the yard without being completley destroyed. I have to combine diet with exercise {shudder}.

Walking in the neighborhood, while better exercise than what we were doing, is, frankly, boring. And the fitness gains are s l o w. Talisa wanted to join a gym - again. I was reluctant since we've thrown money down that rat hole too many times in the past.

The problem has always been that it wasn't "convenient" to go to the gym. After being at work all day and getting stuck in traffic on the way home, it was too easy to justify not going - leave the office at 5:30, tack 20-30 minutes onto the drive home to get to the gym, work out, drive home, clean up, cook supper - all of a sudden we're 9pm before we have supper.

So we quit going to the gym.

I knew all of those "excuses" would come back into play, so I had to find a place that was difficult to NOT go to. I found one. There is an LA Fitness literally on the way to and from work for me, and right around the corner from Talisa's office. I have to pass it twice a day. There is no reason for me to NOT go anymore. Stopping in and working out for an hour doesn't add any inconvenience to my day.

So, if you're at the Windward Parkway LA Fitness, look for me - and make me do just 10 more minutes of cardio!

VITAL STATS
Current weight - 300 lbs