re: Odysseus' Weight Loss/Gain Log - Never ever ever give up

Thursday October 29th, 2020

Morning Weight: 192.0 lbs

Workout
Stationary Bike: 15 Mins x 2
BW Squats: 30 x 2
Pushups: 25 x 2
Situps: 15 x 2
Lunges: 8 x 2

Notes
It was hard to force myself onto the bike, but I felt better after I got going. I tried to keep strict form on my workouts and go slow. It's a lot harder than blasting them out as I do on Saturdays. Total workout time was around an hour. I stretched in between sets.

Diet
Breakfast: 2 eggs, 3 strips turkey bacon, coffee w/ creamer and sugar
Snack: Gala Apple
Lunch: Salad Mix w/ bell pepper, tomato, cucumber, feta cheese, italian dressing, sunflower kernels
Snack: Yogurt w/ blackberries, choc chips w/ walnuts
Dinner: Jambalaya, Milk
Dessert: Bourbon



Notes
I didn't manage to hold off on having a drink until Saturday. I was so antsy yesterday evening and wanted to relax, so I decided to use my last 200 calories on a single 3 oz pour. I was feeling relaxed for an hour, but I am definitely feeling the difference in my sleep quality. If I had anything important today I would have held off, but it's all studying for me today.

We finished off the Jambalaya, so we will have Salmon and.....not sure what else. I am sure there are some fresh vegetables in the fridge, and if there aren't, I have a stockpile of cans that have been sitting for months.

Other Notes
Not much going on today. I have to take an economics quiz (easy), do a discussion board for my English class (easy) and start on the next chapter of statistics (NOT easy). I am grateful to have this entire Friday to work on these things. Eventually I will do some exercise. I was thinking 1 Mile splits.

I was looking at the standings last night since we are nearing the midway point of the season, and the NFC East is absolute dogshit. It's looking more and more like one of those teams is going to get a home field game in the playoffs with a 7-9, maybe even 6-10 record. Meanwhile, the entire NFC west has to fight with each other just to get a wildcard. Hopefully the Saints can get out of these next 7 games, only losing 1, MAYBE 2, and be at worst 9-4 headed into the Chiefs game.

I don't have much else. Hope everyone has a good one!

Bruh

nah

I like my snacks

Saturday October 31st, 2020

Morning Weight: 191.8 (NEW MORNING LOW!)

Workout
Run: 1.35 Miles -- 8:22 Pace



Stationary Bike: 4 x 20 Min Segments
Pushups: 4 x 50
Squats: 4 x 40
Situps: 4 x 25
Lunges: 4 x 10

Notes
I have heard of people who just get up and go run. I thought about it, and figured that if I run before I drink my coffee, I shouldn't need to use the bathroom, and why not try it out. I got up, put on my clothes, did a little stretch, and hit the door. I gotta say, I don't care for it. I felt groggy, my body felt weird breaking an intentional sweat after it was at rest just 15 minutes prior. I also felt rushed because I needed to get back and take the dog on her morning walk. I think I'll stick to evening workouts.

Even though I did my little test run I still hopped on the bike and did my bodyweight work. It's become my 2nd favorite part of Saturdays. I am sore today.

Diet
Breakfast: 2 eggs, 3 strips turkey bacon, coffee w/ creamer and sugar
Snack: Gala Apple
Lunch: Turkey and Cheese Roll Up, Cherry Coke
Snack: Chips and Salsa
Dinner: Del taco burrito and soft taco
Dessert: none



Notes
It was a good day in terms of caloric intake, however my food choices were suspect. There is something about watching football that makes me want high sodium, high fat, sugar laden food. Especially the chips and salsa. I love a big bowl of chips and a big bowl of salsa on gameday.

I meant to have red beans and rice for dinner, but I forgot to soak the beans Friday night. Would have been a lot better than a cheap del taco burrito.

Other Notes
I don't even know what to say about LSU. What an arse-whipping. Aside from Stingley the defense was garbage, Finley looked rattled, OLine couldn't block anyone, backs not hitting holes, play calling was suspect. I don't know. If we can finish the season 4-6 that'd be a success. 5-5 means we beat one of Bama, UF, or A&M and I just can't see it. I knew there would be a regression but this is the worst LSU team I have ever seen.

In other college football news, Clemson looks pretty mortal without TL. Still very good and able to turn on the jets, but they are beatable (lookin at you, ND). It feels like all roads lead to Bama/Clemson part 5, but Ohio State may have something to say about that. Also, and I know this is a crazy thought, but given a loss or two in the top 6, Cincinnati is looking extremely impressive. If there was any year a G5 team could sneak into that playoff, this would be the year.

We decided to watch scary movies last night instead of me watching college football, which was actually nice after watching Auburn shove their dick down LSU's throat. We watched 2 movies, one we had seen before and one we had not.



AND



Hush was your basic slasher film with a twist (the girl is deaf). We have seen it before, but it's still good for a jump scare.

The Ritual, on the other hand, was more psychological and sorta disturbing. I didn't know what the movie was about, and I won't spoil it, but I found it really interesting.

Anyway, gonna finish up some Stats today, watch Joey B, and actually watch Saints/Bears. It will be the first full Saints game I watch this season. I have been really apathetic concerning the NFL for the past 3 years. I hope we win, though. It would make the Bucs game next week pretty significant.

That's all I got. Hope everyone has a good Sunday!

quote:

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I also felt rushed because I needed to get back and take the dog on her morning walk.

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What kind of dog? Mine loves to run a couple of miles.

Tuesday November 3rd, 2020

Morning Weight: 190.4 lbs

Workout
Cycling: 14.31 Miles



Notes
I stopped to talk on the phone about midway through this ride and was walking around, so auto pause was on and off. That's why the speed was so low. Weather was nice. Good ride.

Diet
Breakfast: 4 eggs, 3 strips turkey bacon, coffee w/ creamer and sugar
Snack: Gala Apple
Lunch: 2 Pieces GF Pizza
Snack: Homemade Tuna, Orange Powerade, Chips and Queso
Dinner: Red Beans and Rice, Milk
Dessert: Swiss Miss HC



Notes
Diet was okay. I took in more sugar than I'd like, but that happens. I made the tuna to try to up my protein intake. I'd like to get it nearing 100g per day. I may make some home made protein bars with whey. I am not sure yet.

Other Notes
Election still too close to call.

I decided to go with the Amazon Job. The other position is 40 miles away, so after taking into account gas, I'd be coming up with the same take home pay and leaving my wife without a vehicle. And although 3-11am is a bit more normal than overnight, it's a strange shift that leaves me wondering about the best time to sleep. Also, Amazon is 4 day 10-hour shifts, giving me an entire extra day for schoolwork. It just makes more sense.

I am trying to adjust my sleeping schedule. I'm tired. Have a good one.

quote:

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Odysseus32

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You give up, baw?

Good read and like you, a former athlete that struggles with food portion and indulgence.

Lost around 50 pounds to start the year doing kickboxing and calorie counting, and then Covid hit. Did great for first few weeks and then slipped and stopped working out (working from home now) and stopped counting calories. Portion sizes and takeout food went on the rise. The weight followed.

Then in October we did a full kitchen renovation and were without the kitchen for 4 weeks. When not eating canned or frozen foods, we were eating take out. I felt awful at the end of that four week period.

After a friend's dad died suddenly from years of neglecting his body, I realized I had to turn this around before it was too late. I started on November 2 and my plan so far is:

Morning: Intermittent Fasting and Black Coffee

Lunch: Some kind of protein and veggie, or just super low carb like chicken sausage, eggs, and a cheese stick. Or leftovers from dinner.

Snacks: Stocked up on healthy snacks and limit myself to one per day. Dried fruit and nuts pack from Costco, beef sticks from Costco, hummus with carrots, etc.

Dinner: Usually a protein and a veggie. Or protein and a green salad with housemade dressing. Proteins are typically chicken, lean pork cuts, sirloin steak, etc. And portion control.

For daily exercise, I take my dog for a walk at lunch and then get on the treadmill for 2 miles a day, working my way to more.

So far I am down 10 pounds (as of this morning) and loving the way I feel while also feeling like I'm not sacrificing much.

Good luck to everyone and anyone on this journey.

Update
I am thinking that I may just start doing weekly updates. I really like this log, but it was much easier to get into a routine of updating when I was waking up at 6 AM, and only had to work a few hours. Working these 10 hour days means that I have about 4 hours before getting ready and driving to work, and most of that is allocated to school.

Rest assured, I am still doing all the same stuff. Less running, mostly because of the temperatures, but I'm still hitting my caloric goals, doing the exercise bike, etc.

I am always searching for accounting internships, and since I am getting into my junior acct classes, maybe it will be easier to land one. As soon as I get back on a semi-normal schedule, daily updates will resume. Until then, it just doesn't take much of a priority.

Monday November 16th, 2020 -- WEEKLY UPDATE
Morning Weight: 188.6 Lbs

Last Week's Exercise
With my body adjusting to the newer, more physical workplace, I was light on my exercise. I did the exercise bike a few times and ran once, although it was freezing out and that was the last time I ran. Also, it was 2 AM, and as much as it is my right to run when it's 2 AM, I know that probably makes some people a little uncomfortable.

Going forward, I'm going to adopt a 3 times a week exercise bike routine until Spring, accompanied by a long walk on Fridays. I'll go Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday on the bike with full body workouts, and then maybe a 3-4 mile walk with the dog on Friday. The cold air really makes my asthma flare up, and I don't like running in the cold otherwise.

Last Week's Diet
I upped my activity level on my fitness pal to "Active", which gave me another 300 or so calories to work with. It's a good thing, too, because I found that when 4:30 hits and I get off work, I am pretty damn hungry.

I was great with my goals, except for Saturday. I didn't go crazy or anything, we just had some steak and potatoes and I finished off the last of the Whiskey in the cabinet (~6/7 units). I definitely felt it yesterday, but it was a good night. Sometimes it's just good to forget about calories and have a good day.

Other Notes
I won't go on about the new job, but I just have to say that this is tough. I hear about some people who work full-time, go to school, AND have kids and I'm not really sure how that is possible. You only have so much energy throughout the day, so those people have my full respect.

I have gotten into a pretty good routine sleeping. I come home and sleep from around 5:30 - 12:30/1 and then have about 4 hours before I start getting ready for work. The nights off are the hard part, as I have to stay up while my wife goes to sleep.

Last week was probably the worst part of the semester to have taken a new job, as it was by far the hardest week yet. I had my 3rd accounting exam, my 3rd Stats exam, and a 5 page literary analysis essay due all within 2 days. I finished all of them, but by Friday night/Sat Morning I was wiped.

I am just glad to see that I have not deprioritized my health during this adjustment period. It would have been easy to make excuses for myself and say that I will get back to eating right when it's more convenient. But it's just not an option. Been there, done that, and I don't want to speak too soon, but I think the days of treating my body like shite without a conscious thought are over.

I'll try to make this weekly update more descriptive as I go, but for now I need to get some economics done.

Later!