50extra - My weight loss journey with all the embarrassing details
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Yes I can see how that is better. Enjoy your anniversary! The cold would get to me I think. But I guess it's what you get used to. In my grief group is a lady that's from Russia. She's been here a long time but she still has relatives there. She's so sweet lost her husband and she's young her husband was only 42. That's why getting healthy is so important. Arizona will be a real change for you. Well better get to bed.0
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How awesome that you will be able to surprise your wife and daughter on your anniversary. That will be pretty special and put a spring in your step for the next few days. Can't wait to see what your numbers are too when you get on the scales. I reckon there will be some change there. Have a safe flight home and enjoy the weekend0
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Yeah I'm pumped for it to all go down, I will have my driver stop off on the way home to pick up the flowers I ordered for the anniversary and her gift as well.
I am having another great day. This is like three in a row. The suns shining, the skies blue, and tomorrow morning at 3am, I start my two day journey home. Add into that, I received notification just now that my yearly bonus is approved and going into my bank tomorrow, as well as a paycheck and the monthly rent for my rental property, all this makes me a happy man.
Last night I did the Ab video again for T25, and again it was brutal although I was able to do a bit more of the routine. There are still a large amount of the exercises that I am completely unable to do, even the modified ones but I did what I could and can only hope to get better moving forward. I finished off the night with an extremely intense 35 minute session on the bike.
I spoke to the Mrs. this morning and we were talking about leading healthier lives. She hasn't been doing T25 every day but when she does them she is doing two workouts back to back in the Beta portion. I apologized to her because I have forgotten to tell her how proud I am of her for getting down to business and working out. I have been so wrapped up in my journey that I forgot to appreciate all of the effort that she has been putting in. Shes working full time, raising our daughter while I am away and is still finding time to workout for three or more hours a week. I have a pretty great wife.
Anyways, Kell, all of your lifting has inspired me to start thinking about my own. When I started down this road I was set on only doing cardio and some workout programs until I lose the weight, then get into weight training to build back up the muscle that I will surely lose along the way. I told my wife that I was interested in buying some weights for the house, and she said that she would like to start lifting as well. What I am looking at is a power rack, incline/flat/decline adjustable bench and a 300lb rubber coated weight set with an Olympic bar to start with. The power rack would allow me to safely workout on the benches by myself because of the safety stops on it. I can get the three things above for about $1100 CAD which is about the amount of money I have saved on booze since I started all of this
The only other thing that we would need is rubber flooring for the workout area in my basement. I have priced it out to be around $1000 for a big enough section to meet our needs and high enough quality that it wont move around on us when we are doing aerobics videos. This is the exact type of rubber flooring that gyms have and is durable enough to drop heavy weights down on it. I will start looking into that kind of stuff further after my holiday next week. If my drive to get it, is anywhere near as high as it is right now, I will pull the trigger and buy it. 0 -
Wow awesome work about the weights. I reckon you will notice weight loss. As I keep getting told the more muscle you build the more your metabolism rises. Brilliant also that you are using the money you have saved to further your healthy lifestyle.
It's great you have your wife on board. Not only is it great you have a partner to work out with but you will be both getting fit and healthy and also setting an awesome example for your daughter.0 -
What a frustrating day with food it's been today. I woke up at 3am to get to the airport on time and had oatmeal and eggs which was great. Get to the airport and planes delayed by an hour, then another, then another and so on. Ended up being 5 hours delayed. All that's in the airport is a vending machine and I was starving so I ate chips and peanuts. Then I get to the apartment in Moscow and there's nothing to be eaten except junk food. Bring on popcorn, dry cereal, pizza (930 cals worth that I haven't logged) and other crappy food. I know exactly how my weight fluctuates up and down and this day set me back a couple of pounds for sure. I'm up again tomorrow at 3am to leave for the airport, tomorrow's got 13 hours more of flying and around 6 hours sitting in the airports. I'm still the one shovelling food into my mouth but it pisses me off not having an easy choice to eat healthy.
I get home on Saturday afternoon. Hopefully Saturday evening I will be able to work out but by that point I will already be awake for over 30 hours straight and it's going to be tough. Then I have Sunday to workout and have to weigh in Monday. It's going to break me if I don't hit my goal by then.
It's going to be real tough for the next 2.5 weeks straight too. Monday afternoon I fly out again, I'm looking at an entire day in the airports and flying, around 6 hours fly time to get there. Then I have a meeting all day Tuesday, get up at 3am again to get to the airport and get on another plane at 6:05am Wednesday morning to come home again. And then Friday I fly out again for my 10 day holiday at 8am. I get home on a Sunday and have to get my RV loaded up and make the 8 hour drive down to my property at the lake to get it opened up and running for the season. I'm exhausted just thinking about it.
These aren't excuses, these are parts of life. Being busy isn't going to stop until I retire so I have to figure out how to at least maintain my weight for the next little while. This is one of the things I need to learn to make this healthy transformation stick for life. Believing that I can keep on track with my weight loss goals for the next little while is being a bit naive.0 -
Mate sometimes you just have to do what you have to do. Sometimes there is no choice but something that is not as healthy as you would like. It's about managing the choices you have in front of you that will give you the best outcome. Sometimes when you have the time you can tweak the situation so it is a bit more healthy but other times you wont be able to do that and its just about making the best of a bad situation. Life happens and you can't stop that. If you believe you can then that's where you are a bit naive. If you can go to bed at night knowing you have done the best you can with the situation you had, then that's a good day. Don't beat up on yourself my friend.
On another note. I read this blog post that came on my Facebook feed today from MFP and given one of your earlier posts I thought I would share it with you
[url]="http://blog.myfitnesspal.com/the-1-thing-you-need-to-be-active-and-healthy-as-you-age/?utm_source=mfp&utm_medium=Facebook"[/url]0 -
Well I made it home safe and sound and surprised the hell out of the Mrs. The flowers I ordered look fantastic and I'm sure she appreciated the US$ I tucked into the envelope too. We have the trip to Arizona at the end of the week plus she will want spending money for summer holidays at our piece of property at the lake which is also in the US.
Anyways, I did step on the scale when I got back and I'm happy with the results. I'll weigh in tomorrow and log it into MFP. I was worried that I wouldn't make my goal weight but as long as I don't eat a couple large pizzas tonight I will make it.
Kell, thanks for that blog post, everything that they say is true in there, strength training is super important and both the wife and I are excited to get started with it. Today I asked for a quote on the rubber flooring I have been looking at. I hope to hear back from them tomorrow. I got a quote for a 11' x 16' piece of 1/2" interlocking flooring. The flooring is top quality, it's the same kind that are in pro gyms. It might me overkill but we want something permanent that will last forever. If it comes in at under $1000 I will buy it. I also got a price for heavy duty mats for under the bike and the treadmill. As for equipment, We are pretty certain on the power rack and workout bench as well as a 300lb weight set and bar. Other than that we don't know what to get. The Mrs wants some more Dumbbells so will probably go that route as well. I'm good with just the bar and weights for now. I don't want to go crazy right off the bat. I want to get high quality stuff and slowly build up our collection with more of it. I'm not interested in getting crap that were not going to be happy with just to have to replace it down the road. My budget for this go around is $2500-$3000 so we should be able to get some of the basics.
On the schedule for tonight is T25. It's been three days since I worked out so I have to get back into it. I was falling asleep by 7pm last night from jet lag so I wasn't able to do anything then. If I can workout tonight and tomorrow morning before I fly down to Texas I'll be right back on the track to healthy living. I need to burn as much fat as I can in the next few days before I pack it back on during out 10 day getaway.0 -
You tell me i'm an inspiration but i have to say you're pretty inspirational yourself Mr 50. Reading your blog and posts on other peoples blogs i can feel my mojo getting a bit stirred up and ready to break back out. Nice work on being pro active about the strength training. I reckon you will really see some weight shift once your body gets used to it and the muscle gain plateaus out a bit. Mrs 50 is going to be healthy and red hot as well. Kudos to you both.0
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You work at you weight loss journey so hard. When you aren't in your zone you worry. It really shows how deadicated you are. That's why you inspire me. Strength training will help. Last time I reached my goal ( before knee injury) I did circuit strength training and cardio. It really help to shape the muscles and didn't have loose skin. I'm glad your wife was surprised. Maybe you could make a healthy trail mix to have on hand on your travel days. Too bad vending machines don't have fruit.0
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Well this was a real nice surprise this morning. I am extremely a happy that I made it down below the 220 mark. Truthfully I'm probably a pound heavier because I was very dehydrated when I woke up this morning but regardless I'll take the loss. Right before bed last night the Mrs and I did two sessions of T25 and I didn't rehydrate enough afterwards.
This loss was a couple pounds more than I thought I was going to see because of my week long beer binge at the start of my last trip. What this has done for me is shown that if I put in the effort I will see the results. In Russia this time I worked my *kitten* off pretty much every night I was in Siberia. The t25 is making me stronger and the cardio I feel is helping to melt the weight off.
I am pretty pumped about the whole thing. I'm writing this sitting in the airport hoping that I don't fall off the wagon too bad during this trip.
Next stop is saying goodbye to being obese!0 -
Way to go! You've made some awesome progress!! 0
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Mate you rock so hard. That is an awesome reward for all the effort you put in in Siberia. Just think what is going to happen when you add in some strength training. Obese will be nothing but a dirty word for you. Keep rocking it mate0
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The fruits of hard labor! Congratulations.0
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Hey guys thanks a lot. I'm pretty brutally honest to myself and this was one of the times that I was actually happy with what I have seen. Not having the scale to stay on track was tough and like I said in your page Kell, I wish you the best in not weighing all the time. I have to continue doing so and I will probably keep doing it for the rest of my life so that I don't slowly gain weight and have to do this journey all over again.
Looking back on my time losing so far I have to say that I am impressed with my consistency. There has only been a couple days where I go WAY over board with binging. Luckily I have been able to make up for it every time. I leave tomorrow for a 10 day getaway and my hope is to maintain my weight within 1-2 pounds.
I've hit a bit of a snag in the home gym setup. The company for the flooring hasn't gotten back to me yet and I've already spent my bonus check on other life issues. I think I'll still buy the gym and put it on credit. I have 10 days to figure it out.
So I completed my business trip to Texas and even though I went with good intentions I didn't workout at all. My weight stayed the same so I'll call that a success. Was way too tired last night to workout but hopefully will get in a short one tonight.
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I had so much catch up reading to do, so I'm not going to comment on much...BUT congrats on getting below 220! I definitely know how amazing that feels. Here's to getting below 210!0
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Hope you're having an awesome time away and getting some much deserved rest0
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Great job reaching below 220!!!0
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Ok I'm back from down south and had a fantastic time. The weather was amazing, my daughter LOVED the pool, the beer was ice cold, and we ate like kings. I even got a little bit of a tan so that was a bonus. Oh and when I say that my daughter loved the pool, I'm talking like I played with her for three hours a day, it was amazing.
So I went down there with a ton of steam behind me, I just stepped off the scale at the lowest weight I've been in years, I was going strong with T25, and fitting into a bunch of clothes that have been parked in the closet for a long time. I loaded up my workout gear and my HRM and was convinced that I would workout. I literally lasted less than 24 hours on eating good and never pulled my shoes out of my suitcase to workout. I found that it's impossible to eat healthy in a household of 6 people where I wasn't in charge of the cooking. I have no idea what my intake was for the days, my best guess would be 4000-6000 every day. After the first day I decided that I would eat what was served, drink beer when I wanted and snack at any time I felt the need. Chips, nuts, sandwiches, pop, pizza, bacon, waffles, sausage, you name it. So I decided if I gained 5 pounds I would be okay with it.
So I got home last night and stepped on the scale and my fricken scale was busted. I went over today and bought two new scales, one is coming to Russia with me. Stepped on the scale and I was only 219.6 pounds. A 2.2 pound gain over two weeks of not exercising and eating like crap was great news. It proves to me that once I reach my goal weight I don't have to worry about each and every day I indulge in eating what's offered. I was pretty happy about it.
So once I knew where I was in terms of progress it was time to workout. I went down to the treadmill. For the first 30 minutes I did week four day three of C25K. I killed it, I had the treadmill on a 2 incline, did my walks at 3.6mph and my runs at 5.6mph. I still felt like I had some sweat left in me so I immediately started week 5 day 1. Around half way through it my right hip started to get real sore, I kept going because it was just sore muscles. Unfortunately I assume that I must have started favouring it because with 20 seconds left of the run in the workout something happened to my left knee. I have no idea what I did but it hurts, I have a slight limp when I walk and when I straighten my leg when sitting down it really doesn't feel nice.
So after taking the two weeks off I wanted to kick off T25 from the beginning again, unfortunately with this bummed knee there's no way I can do the squats and lunges that are in the videos. I'm worried but I'm going take it easy, hopefully it's just strained.
So on Wednesday I will be hauling my RV down to the lake and getting set up for the summer. I might be heading down with an old friend. Hopefully it all works out because we were best friends for 10 years but have drifted apart for the last 10 or so years. It would be nice to reconnect and maybe start hanging out again. I'm back home on Thursday night or Friday and will be heading back into Russia on Sunday.
Well, I'm hopefully going to be able to continue and working out for the next few days, regardless I'll keep logging.
Thanks for reading!0 -
Wow 50 you've done some awesome stuff. Great to hear about the minimal weight gain but bummer about the knee. As you say hopefully just a minor strain and it will heal quickly. Just baby it along.
I hope the trip goes ok with your mate. Nothing better than reconnecting with old friends.
Maybe some time in cooler Russia will be good for your knee0 -
Great job getting below 220!
Speaking as someone with chronic knee problems - TAKE IT EASY. The worst thing you can do is push your knee immediately after injuring it. Give it plenty of time to heal. I know it's SO hard to not get right back to it. Your mind and body are probably itching to get back to exercising as fiercely as you were, but if you push your knee too soon you can do permanent damage. Ice immediately after injury and the first few days, heat after - what's usually recommended. If you do continue exercising on it, stick to lower-impact exercises (no running - walking's fine) and wrap your knee ahead of time. A plain ace bandage will do, but a knee brace is better. Extra support for the next few days (even when you're not exercising) will help it heal properly and more quickly.
Enjoy your time with your friends. I'm sure the time apart will seem like nothing once you're back in the same room. 0 -
Woke up today and my hip and knee are both jacked up pretty bad. I have to focus on eating today instead of working out, it's frustrating because I sure like the added calories to eat. When I run out of calories it mentally makes me hungry, when I see I have a ton left I don't get as hungry. The pain in my knee is a weird one, it's not very painful to bend down like usual joint pain, the time when it hurts the worst is when I am standing and I lift my foot up to my butt.
This trip tomorrow couldn't come at a better time, it will take my mind off of not being able to workout. I have some manual labor to do at the property like cutting up 150 foot tall downed trees so I will still be active. Hopefully enough to burn off the bud lite.
Oh yeah, still no update on the rubber flooring for our home gym. I wish I had a company that I could afford to ignore people who want to spend $1000 on a product I sell. It's frustrating. I don't even want to phone them because I feel they should get back to me, customer service seems rare these days.
Quzz, I will definitely take it easy on the knee. Walking is out as it hurts pretty bad but I may try the stationary bike for a zero impact workout.
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Tried the bike tonight and there was no way that my knee can take it. Ah well, time for rest.
Turns out my buddy can't make it on the trip so I guess I have time for self reflection. It's about an 8 hour drive down with the 5th wheel and 7 hours home, plus the work on the property by myself. The only plus side is the beer consumption should be reduced a bit.
I have internet down there so I'm sure I'll be checking in on a regular basis 0 -
Have a safe trip! That sucks about the knee, hope it gets better soon!0
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Enjoy your trip - is swimming an option?0
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Well I made it back from The US safe and sound. I actually came home earlier than I wanted to because my knee was killing me. Home for a day and a half then back to Russia. Life is so busy.0
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Wow you are all over the place. I hope you're taking time out to rest that knee and get it healing. Look after yourself in Russia1
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Yeah it's been an insane amount of travel the last few weeks. I'm heading to the airport in 1.5 hours, thankfully this trip is only 3.5 weeks. I will be staying in Moscow for three nights before heading into Siberia so I'm only there for three weeks which should be a breeze.
Once the shifts over I'm back to running around again. I get home on a Thursday at 330pm and will drive down to my property for May long weekend that night. Hopefully I won't have to tow anything and then the Mrs. Can drive.
As for the knee, I can't say that I have been resting it but I definitely haven't been working out. Working down south it got real sore, I was there by myself cutting up huge trees and hauling the wood and I over worked it. I actually came home a day early because it was getting hard to walk. Not being able to workout has been tough mentally. I found that once I took my focus off of fitness I lost focus on healthy eating and tracking as well. I'm hoping that by the time I hit Siberia it feels good enough for the bike. I don't need to start T25 again yet but I need to get some cardio in. I weighed this morning and it didn't look good. I was back up to 220.6. I'm disappointed in gaining weight this time home but considering the circumstances I am okay with it. My goal weight for this trip in Russia is to come home and be 212 pounds. That would be 5 pounds from what I was when I got home this time. 8 pounds from where I am now in 3.5 weeks seems like a steep goal but I can and will do it.
@kell2912 I am going to look into that watch you got. Up to this point I believe you and I are finding some success I. Some of the same areas, if you say that it's the best gadget you have gotten so far I'm going to look into it.
Because of the uncertainty of my knee I feel as though the goals and timeline I set out before are now unachievable, I will be setting new ones next time I get home. I have packed my scale this trip in so I can stay on track.
It's been slow in the motivation journals lately. I hope to see you guys posting more, seeing you guys achieving results helps me stay motivated.
I'll talk to you guys again from the other side of the world.0 -
I'm sorry to hear about your knee and the overall effect it's had on your life. Bike should be easier since it is low impact, but again work your way up if possible.
Hang in there. You can make it. If you don't make your original goals it isn't failure. Not setting new goals is.0 -
Hey Mate Bummer about your knee still being on the fritz. Hopefully with a bit of rest it will be right for some light riding once you get to Siberia. I would definitely recommend the watch. It is giving me so much information and it also is telling me when ive been sitting too long and when i need to move. Also tells me what % of my workout has been fat burn. I'm just loving it and can't recommend it enough.
Definitely reassess those goals and see where you're at. i have been doing a bit of that now that I am 4 months into this journey and have a bit of data to work with. As @Quzzdragon12 said not reaching your original goals is not failing but not setting new ones is. Keep working on it. You got this0 -
Well I'm settled in across the pond. I got up and showered this morning, whipped out the trusty old scale and BAM!!! 222.2 pounds
It sucks, but it happens. There will be two or so pounds on there just from flying. I tend to gain a bunch of weight from the super salty food on the airplanes plus I eat like a pig when I fly, not sure why but I do, probably boredom.
Its a far cry from the 217.4 pounds I was celebrating just a few weeks ago but its where I am at today. My current weight does not change the goal weight of 212 by the time i get home. I will be in Siberia for three weeks and I believe that I can lose 3 pounds a week by staying real strict on my diet and riding the bike. Again, this is all conditional on my knee feeling good enough to ride. If I can get back down to 220 in the few days that I am here in Moscow I will be well on my way to meeting this goal.
I had said that my mom started MFP a while back and was going to start working out with me. Well, she stuck to the plan for exactly one day and quit. Now my father has signed up to MFP because he sees the success that I have been having, even if I have gained 5 pounds in the last few weeks. He also works over here and is going to try it for the three weeks that he is on shift. He has his loss set to one pound a week, and I am sure that if he sees results he will stick to it. He is weighing in at around 230 pounds right now and is sick of getting red in the face while tying his shoes. MFP has given him 1850 calories which is a good amount of calories to eat in a day. I had a feeling that he was going to do something because for the last few days he has been asking me how many calories are in certain foods.
So going forward, I am back on my daily oatmeal for breakfast and since lunches are hard to come by in the Moscow office I have brought tuna and protein powder to get me through lunch. Dinners will be the hard part to stay on track. We have a BBQ tomorrow and on the menu is beef tenderloin, scallops, lamb chops, veggies and beer. Im looking forward to it.0
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