Hello to portion control...

GoJohnGo71

Hi there, I'm a newcomer to myfitnesspal. I'm a 44 year old young grandfather of a 6-year-old beauty. Home is Winnipeg, Canada. I'm close to five feet-ten inches and hit my highest-ever weight of close to 200 pounds in mid-2010. Thanks to a break-up and ensuing funk I got myself down to about 162 lb. I dieted, ran lots and got into a "rock star" mindset.

The following years had been relatively great weight-wise until this past summer and fall. Close to a year ago, I weighed just shy of 170. Stress and other physical issues helped keep my weight there. Things got better in summer health-wise and I "celebrated" by basically eating and drinking anything...and a lot of it. It was easy to get around by wearing my big, loose shorts and t-shirts, but the kicker came in late October when I put jeans on for the first time in several months. Out of about ten pairs, only one fit!!

My daughter married in late October. I had to buy a new suit. To my shock, I ended up in 37 inch pants. I resolved to keep exercising (I always exercise) and, yeah, cut back on the chips, fast food, pizza, sugar and booze. My profile pic is from late October.

This past Christmas, things weren't any better. The jeans were still super tight, and I was getting tired walking around with the sucked in gut every day. I was tired all day and slept bad at night. And the endless cycle of non-stop eating and hoping to get back to 162 again was wearing me out.

Before the new year, a co-worker asked me to join a work Biggest Loser contest. I said yes immediately. Such a contest made me successful in 2010. I figured I would just go ahead and starve myself and exercise every day like I had then. A couple people told me to check out myfitnesspal. I was sold immediately.

I weighed in 22 days ago at 191 pounds. I am now sitting at 184 today. I am using myfitnesspal religiously every day. I have learned a lot about how I eat...and how much of it I eat. I've luckily never dealt with an obesity issue, but I am certain that moving forward in the direction I was on, I would have been in the 200's in no time.

My goal is 160 to 165. I'm not a big guy. I love the trim look on myself.

I know that once I hit my goal and this work contest is over, I will introduce some of my favourite foods back onto my personal menu. But I need to track how much I eat and realize that portions do matter. I need to remind myself that food can be eaten slowly, actually tasted and enjoyed. And I need to remember that more of it will come later. Nervous excitement does not have to be a part of my relationship with eating.