Fooling Around

In the past couple of months we have been fooling around to much. I have gained ten pounds. That is not good. Now is the time to nip it in the bud. I don’t want to get back to that person that I once was.

We went to Wooster, Ohio in June for a motorcycle rally and I ate more than I should have. On July the 8th we celebrated our 49th wedding anniversary. We rented a cabin in Hocking Hills and we just ate and drank whatever we wanted. Now it is back to business. We are eating healthy and going to the Health Plex four or five days a week.

We were in the Anderson Forth of July Parade for the Health Plex. We pulled a float with our motorcycle and on the windshield of the motorcycle we had a before picture of me and it said that I lost 140 lbs at the healthplex. The cool thing about it was as we went along the route the people would applaud for me. It brought tears to my eyes. It was very encouraging to me and makes me want to stay with it even more.

Am I Treated Differently?

I was ask the other day if people treated me any differently since I lost the weight. The answer to that is yes. I was at a motorcycle club meeting the other day and at the end of the meeting they draw numbers for door prizes. I won a door prize and it was a bag of candy. The lady that was handing out the door prizes said “She don’t want that.” and she gave me some potholders instead. All of the people that know me know that I’m eating healthy and they don’t offer me candies and cookies. I did find out that a lot of people were very worried about me. They knew that if I didn’t lose some weight that I would probably not be alive very long.

We are in Wooster, Ohio now for a motorcycle rally and we stopped at a restaurant for lunch. I ordered a vegeburger and I was talking to the waitress about it and I told her about the weight loss and how I done it. She told me that she wished that she could get her mom to exercise more and lose weight. She said that her mom eats pretty good but she doesn’t exercise. I gave the girl the information to go to my blog and told her that if her mom read my story maybe it would help her and that she just has to find her why.
I think a very good why would be that her daughter is worried about her.

The only reason that I agreed to write this blog in the first place was to help others that are overweight and to let them know that they can lose it. There is hope. I know exactly what they are going thru because I was there.

Tennis Lessons

I talked about Camp weight loss in the last Blog. While we were doing the Camp Weight Loss we also signed up for Tennis in No Time. Tennis in No Time is a three week course (two days a week). We never played tennis before and that is who the course is designed for. We started out with a ball that is almost as large as a softball and it was like a nerf ball. If it hit you it wouldn’t hurt. It also bounced a lot slower than a regular tennis ball which made it easier to hit. After a couple lessons we went to the next size ball. It was just a little larger than a regular tennis ball and was softer so that it was also slower than a regular tennis ball. For the last two lessons we used a regular tennis ball.

The first lesson we learned the Forehand Volley (forehand grip, ready position and execution) and the Forehand Groundstroke. The second lesson we learned the Backhand Volley (The backhand grip and execution) and the Backhand Groundstroke. The third lesson we learned how to serve. This is one of the things that I am still having trouble with. The fourth lesson was about scoring and basic rules and movement in the backcourt. The fifth lesson was mostly about strategy. Lesson six was about doubles and singles strategy.

We learned a lot in six lessons and it was a lot of fun and great exercise. Our lessons were on Tuesday and Thursday and we would come in on Monday, Wednesday and Friday to practice what we learned the day before. We enjoyed the tennis so much that we went out and bought rackets.

Camp Weight Loss

I haven’t written anything in my blog since March. I ran out of subjects to talk about without repeating myself. I’m sure that people don’t want to read about the same old stuff over and over.

I have been very busy over the last few months. Clarence and I signed up for Camp Weight Loss at the Healthplex. It is a program for people that want to lose 20 pounds or more. It teaches you meal planning, counting calories, and how to get off of the diet plateau. We met on Saturday mornings and Gretchen worked our butts off. There was some of the exercises that I couldn’t do so Gretchen gave me other exercises to do. After working us out really hard on Saturday she gave us homework to do the rest of the week. The homework included working out and keeping a record of what we ate. It is an eight week program and I would recommend it to anybody. Clarence lost about 15 pounds and I gained a couple of pounds. Gretchen told me that I’m not used to doing ground exercises and she thinks that I gained muscle because my clothes still fit.

Success Stories

I thought that I would talk about some of the weight loss success stories that I read about. You can read about them on the HealthPlex web page.

I found that most of the stories had the same thing in common. Health. That is the same reason that I started my weight loss journey.

When Chris Johnson was in town one of the things that he talked about was finding your “Why”. Why do you want to lose weight. Health is a big why for most of the people that I read about.

Randy lost 166 lbs. Before he started he had three strokes and had a stent put in his heart and was diagnosed with type two diabetes.

Terri lost 50 lbs. Her family had a contest to see who could lose the most weight and she also wanted to look good for her daughters wedding.

The McCoy family lost a total weight of 121 lbs. He weighed over 300 lbs and she was about 60 lbs overweight. He was pre diabetic and the doctor told him that he needed to do something. The biggest reason that they had for losing weight was they wanted to be able to see their son grow up. That was their “Why”.

Karen lost 110 lbs. Her doctor told her she would be lucky to live to the age of fifty if she didn’t do something. That kind of hit home for me because I was headed in that direction too. I can’t think of a bigger “Why” than that.

I’m so very proud of these people for making the same choice as I have and sticking to it. These are just a few of the stories. The list goes on and on. I’m Proud to be included in this group of success stories. I want to end this by saying “ WE DID IT AND SO CAN YOU. “

My Weekend to Splurge

Clarence and I went to Columbus for a motorcycle rally called “Cabin Fever”. The motorcycle club took over the Crown Plaza Hotel. We had over three hundred people at the hotel. It was a weekend of fun and games and of course food. I ate more than I should have but it was my weekend to splurge. The morning after we got back home I got on the scale and I gained nine pounds. I was very puffy from all of the salted foods and from being on my feet a lot. The next morning (after a good nights rest) I weighed again and I lost six of the nine pounds. That proved to me that it was just water weight and I felt a little better. The big thing now is to get back in the swing of things and lose the rest of it.

Chris Johnson’s Visit to the HealthPlex

On Friday, January 15th we met for lunch in western hills with Chris Johnson and his friend Tab. It is the first time that I had ever met him and I was very excited. He was a very nice person and he and Tab both tried to tell me that I would do fine. They said to just tell my story from my heart. I guess that is what I did.

After I told my story at the Western Hills Healthplex a lot of people told me that I did a good job. But I really couldn’t remember what I said. I was so nervous. On the 16th we had to be at Fairfield by 8 O’ clock to speak at nine. It was a little easier this time. We had a microphone so I didn’t have to talk so loud. My oldest son his wife and our grandson was their to hear me tell my story and for support. We left Fairfield at about 11:30 for Anderson.

We had to speak at Anderson at 1:30. I had to speak a little louder at Anderson because they didn’t have a microphone. It was a very good experience for me and although I was nervous I’m ready to do it again. It was nice to be able to hear Chris speak at all three Healthplexes and I learned a lot. After each speaking engagement we had a mini healthfair and I had a table set up so that people could ask questions or make comments. There was a good turn out at all three healthplexes.

I want to thank everyone for their support not only at this event but all of the way thru my weight loss journey. I would also like to urge you to make comments on my blog. Ask questions or give suggestions. If I don’t know the answer to your questions I have the experts at the healthplex that will help me.

Lessons Learned

I learned a few things the hard way over the past couple of weeks. On Christmas morning I got up, took a shower and went in to take my medicine. I started feeling faint so I called for Clarence and by the time he got to me I had passed out. He called 911 and they sent an ambulance and took me to the hospital. We spent Christmas day in the hospital. After several test and hours later they determined that I had a low sodium level.

I have been watching my salt intake ever since I started eating healthy because it makes me retain water. I thought that there was enough salt in the foods that I ate without adding extra. The doctor told me that since I started eating healthy I wasn’t eating a lot of process foods and that is where the salt is added. I just never thought about that. I learned a lesson and wanted to pass it along.

Lesson #2 is drink plenty of water. I thought that I was drinking plenty of water. Yesterday I had a follow up appointment with my family doctor. I passed out in her office and went to the hospital again. This time after being there all day they found out that I was dehydrated. Now Clarence is making sure that I have something to drink on my table at all times.

Chris Johnson is Coming to Town

Chris will be speaking at all three healthplexes and I will also be telling my story. I will be telling my story first and he will be on after me. I’m glad that I’m first because he would be a hard act to follow. I have never met him but I have talked to him on the phone. I‘m very excited and can’t hardly wait to meet him. If you have been following my blog you know that Chris Johnson’s book “On Target Living” is what turn my life around. I think one of the things in his book that helped me is he said take baby steps. Don’t give up everything all at once. He also has a target with the best foods in the center and they get worse as you get away from the center. Eating the right kind of food, and exercise goes together.

I will be very nervous when it is my turn to speak because I’m not used to speaking in front of an audience but I hope that everyone shows up. I need all of the support that I can get. We will be at Western Hills Healthplex on Jan. 15th at 4:00 pm, at Fairfield Healthplex on Jan. 16th at 9:00 am and at Anderson Healthplex on Jan, 16th at 1:00 pm.

Update on clothing size

It has been a long time since I changed my clothing size. I checked back in the blog and it was July 27th when I got into a size 14 slacks and I weighed 208.4 lbs. At that time I reset my goal. I wanted to get below 200 lbs and I wanted to get down to a size 12 slacks. It has been almost five months and I’m now down to that size 12 and I weigh 191 lbs. I want to be in the 180s by the end of the year. It is hard to lose weight over the holidays.

Why I Write The Blog

Almost a year ago I was ask to write a blog to tell my story. I agreed to do it because I thought that it would help others that are overweight like I am. I wanted to let them know that there is hope for them. Since I started the blog I have talked to a lot of people that have started losing weight after reading my story. I always said that if I could help just one person it would be worth doing. I was very happy to hear from so many. I have had some comments on the blog itself and I encourage people to feel free to make comments and ask questions. If I don’t have the answers I will find someone that does.

Eating over the Thanksgiving Holiday

The Thanksgiving holiday is one of the worst holidays for people that are trying to lose weight. I was invited to a friend's house for Thanksgiving but I had a very bad cold and had to cancel. Clarence went out and bought what we needed for dinner and we ate at home. We had turkey breast, dressing, cranberry sauce, gravy and pumpkin pie with sugar free whipped cream on top. This was a real treat for me and as I said you need to treat yourself once in a while. I didn’t overeat. I watched my portion sizes and I actually lost weight over the holiday. I’m now 193.8 pounds which is the lowest that I have been so far. That’s 136.2 pounds that I have lost!

My Accident

I tripped and fell at the mall on Wednesday the 11th of November. I hit my head and was knocked out. I was taken to the hospital and after a CT scan and some blood tests they determined that I was ok. When we got home I had a lot of pain in my side when I took deep breathes. We figured that I had a cracked or badly bruised rib. We went to the doctor yesterday and she said that my rib wasn’t broken. The last time we seen the doctor was two months ago and I have lost 13 lbs since then, according to the doctor's scale. With the sore ribs I haven't been able to go to the Healthplex but I still lost 1 lb. I was afraid that I would gain weight. I stayed with my lifestyle eating habits. You notice I didn’t say my diet. It is a lifestyle. The doctor said I could start back to exercising so today we are going to start back in the pool.

A little Trick to share

Most people that have tried to quit smoking chew gum instead of smoking. The same thing works for eating. After I get done eating I put a stick of sugarless gum in my mouth. It keeps me from getting a second helping or deserts. I do the same thing during the day. I chew gum just about all of the time. It keeps me from snacking in between meals. I also try to keep busy and keep my mind on other things.

More Exciting News

Today I got on the scale and it read 199.2. I was very happy to finally get below 200 lbs. Now my goal is to get out of the 190s. I know that I will probably jump back up into the 200s again a time or two before I get out of the 190s. It’s just the way that the weight loss has been going. It’s slow but I’m determined. When I broke the 300 lb. mark I was very happy and I was hoping that I would be able to get below 200 lb. but I wasn’t sure if it would be possible.

I went shopping a couple of days ago looking for a size 12 jeans. I tried on a couple of pairs but they are a little to tight yet. I figure that I will have to lose five more pounds. That’s another goal to shoot for.

Oct. 11th Update

It’s getting harder and harder to lose weight. I got below 210 lbs in June of this year and I weigh 202 lbs now. It has been a roller coaster ride all the way. My main goal is to get below 200 lbs by the end of the year. My doctor said that for my height and age I should weigh 180 lbs. I would like to be between 170 lbs and 180 lbs.

I have been off of my blood sugar medicine for a month now and my blood sugar has been around 90 which is very good.

I have started walking the track as a new exercise. I used to only be able to walk 1/4 of a lap last year and I would have to sit down and let my pulse rate come down. (One lap is 1/6 th of a mile.) Now I can do three laps without stopping. I know that 1/2 mile isn’t very far but I just started last week.

Six Month Assessment

I went to see Cindy, my HealthPlex Wellness Coach, yesterday for my six month assessment. She was very pleased with the results and so was I. As you can see I lost more weight and all of the other numbers are down which is a good thing. I’m finding it harder to lose weight now that I don’t have as much to lose. But as Cindy said "It will be done."

Initial assessment March 2009:
weight=222
BMI = 36
Body Fat = 34.5%
BP = 129/59

6 Month assessment Sept. 2009:
weight= 208
BMI = 34
Body Fat = 31%
BP = 117/57

Six month assessment shows a 3.5% decrease in Body Fat, decrease in BMI of 2 points.

Cindy wrote me an email:

I recommend changing your program (back to more weight training) to surge toward your goal of weight under 200.
It will be done!!

Great job in your accomplishment of coming off meds!!

I'm here when you need me,

Cindy

Good News From The Doctor

I went to the doctor for a regular checkup Tuesday and had blood test done at that time. The doctor was very happy with the progress that I have made with the weight loss. After she examined me she said I could quit taking the acid reflux pills and I could take the alleve only as needed for pain. The best news came on wednesday. My blood test came back and the doctor said that I could stop taking the blood sugar medicine. She said that I should be able to control the blood sugar with diet and exercise. I go back to the doctor in two months and at that time she is going to see if she can reduce the dosage of my cholesterol medicine. I was taking a big handful of pills and they are slowly getting less and less.

Deep/Yoga Flow

I have had a hard time losing weight recently so I thought that I would try something different. On Thursday mornings I started a new class. It is called Deep/Yoga Flow. It starts out with exercises in the deep water for a half hour and then we go to the warm water pool for stretching and balance for the second half hour. What a combination. After that class I do the hydro rider class which is the bicycles in the water. After doing the yoga flow it seems like it is easier to do the hydro rider class. I’m now going to the gym four days a week instead of three but the weight is starting to come off again.

Our Trip to the Drive-In

We went to the drive-in Saturday for the first time in forty years. We went with the other members of the motorcycle club. It is one of the scheduled events that they do every year but in past years we had other things to do.

Clarence got on line and checked to see what kind of snacks they had to offer at the drive-in and found out that we could not have anything on their menu. He also found out that they didn’t want you to bring food or drinks into the drive-in. He emailed the owners of the drive-in and told them the situation and that the only way that we could attend is if we could bring our own snacks. They replied the next day and said they understood and that we could bring our own.

I took celery, radishes, carrots, apples and a couple bottles of water. We try to plan ahead before we go anywhere. If we are going out to eat we check the menu online before we go so we can make the best choices and we know what we are going to order before we get there.