Bumps In The Road

My commute to work is a 60-plus mile round trip. Over the years I've become quite familiar with the route I take to get there. That doesn't mean that the trip is exactly the same every day. There's always something new demanding my attention. Construction, accidents, potholes and heavy volume are just some of the obstacles I must face regularly. Detours are something to be expected, no matter how annoying they are.

The road I'm navigating to return to the healthy habits I abandoned is also filled with obstacles to avoid. These "bumps in the road" must be handled carefully. If not, I risk running off the road and never reaching my destination.

This is my way of saying that I encountered one of these bumps last night in the form of ice cream and fresh-out-of-the-oven chocolate chip cookies. That left me with a question this morning: What was I going to do about it? Was I going to continue going "off road" or did I want to get back on the highway so I could resume my journey to better health?

My answer is simple. I am back on the road to the "No Junk Zone" after a slight diversion. No matter what your goal or priority, a slight bump in the road does not signify catastrophe. As Ol' Blue Eyes used to sing, "Take a deep breath, pick yourself up, dust yourself off and start all over again."

One Priority At A Time

Last night's plan for dinner was fettuccine Alfredo. Knowing that "fettuccine Alfredo" is the Italian phrase for "avalanche of calories," I opted instead to start off with a small salad, then I made a large stir fry of mixed frozen veggies and diced ham steak seasoned the way I like with a very small portion of the pre-Alfredo fettuccine mixed in.

It was actually a very tasty and filling meal. I also had a few small pieces of the garlic bread that was on the table. Then I topped the meal off with two, maybe three, forks full of the Alfredo-drenched pasta.

As I sat there afterwards I reflected on my meal. Yes, I ate more than I intended. I certainly know that I could have done without the garlic bread and the extra pasta. It was then that I decided that I had a very successful day.

Yesterday was a successful day for me because I didn't eat any junk food. Even though I had large dinner that included a few not-so-healthy choices, my priority for the day was to stay in the "No Junk Zone" that I've been in since Monday. Because that was my only priority, I didn't consider my dinnertime choices as setbacks to my attempt to get back on track.

In time I will expand my priorities to once again include portion control and better choices in my food selection. But for now I'm taking it one day and one priority at a time.

Song And Dance

When I started to write this post I was going to talk about what's been going on in my life that contributed to the recent unpleasantness between my bathroom scale and myself. But then I realized that it doesn't really matter. Everyone has things going on in their lives that make maintaining a healthy lifestyle difficult. In spite of that, there are countless men and women out there who have made made it a top priority to take care of their bodies. I had just stopped making it a priority in my life.

That's why you won't find any song and dance here today. No excuses or rationalizations. Just someone trying to reset his priorities so he can get back to where he was.

I declared yesterday a No Junk Zone, meaning that no junk food would pass my lips for the entire day. I made it my top priority for the day. It worked out very well even though my planning left much to be desired. In celebration of that success, I've decided to make it my top priority again today.

While it may only be one small part of living a healthy lifestyle, it is a move in the right direction. And that's all I need right now.

Whatever Happened To Skinny Guy?

Nothing happened to me that hasn't happened to anyone else. I fell off the wagon and lay there watching as it ran over me, backed up, and ran over me again and again. The good news is that I'm here and ready to make another attempt at getting back on board. Thanks to everyone who left a comment or emailed wondering where I was.

Are you ready to hear about my Big Master Plan for getting back on track? So am I! But it occurred to me that the bigger the plan, the easier it is to fail. That's why my Big Master Plan can be summed up in two words.

Baby steps.

That's all I'm committing myself to right now. Something small that can done without extreme amounts of effort in a 24 hour period. Something that I know I can do. And if I manage to do it today, I will try to do it again tomorrow. But I'm just concern with today for now. And today's baby step is one that I know I can do.

Today is a No Junk Zone. I will eat a healthy breakfast, lunch and dinner. Any snacks I have will not have a list of ingredients on them. I will do my best to keep any and all cakes, crackers, chips, pretzels, candies, and other "goodies" away from my mouth.

If I can do this for today, I will be happy.

My Name Is Skinny Guy

And I'm a carboholic. I've been on a two month bender that has seen me sabotage all of my attempts to get back on track. There is usually no shortage of baked goods present in the house, but I'm usually able to avoid them because they're the boxed, over-processed variety of store bought junk, and they don't usually appeal to me.

But throughout the holiday season, my wife went on a baking spree that pushed me past my ability to control myself. Lord knows, she did her best to protect me from myself, but I was determined to commit carbocide.

Once I plowed through all the good stuff, I showed even less self control and started eating all the crappy stuff I could get my hands on as well. Even as long ago as last night I was popping boxed mini-donuts into my pie hole.

So as of this posting, I'm going to try to put the brakes on. Again.

"Persistence, not perfection."

2009 Goal #2: Build Some Muscle

[It is traditional for nearly everyone to make resolutions or set goals for the new year. Over these next few posts, I will be discussing my top goals for 2009.]

At the end of yesterday's post I said that this post would be about losing the fat. I've decided to rethink the order in which I'm posting my goals, so today I'm going to talk about another goal instead, that of building muscle.

When I lost 130 pounds, I did it mostly by counting calories (points) on WeightWatchers with some cardio work thrown in for good measure. The cardio training consisted mostly of walking and I didn't do any strength training at all.

While I will always be grateful to WeightWatchers for providing me with a program that I was able to follow and use to transform my health, I've done a lot of reading and studying since then. Now I realize that if I had included strength training in my regimen, I could have added more fat-burning lean body mass to my frame instead of almost certainly losing the lean body mass that I did by not doing any strength training.*

By beginning some sort of strength training now, I'll be able to build up some of that fat-burning muscle that will help me improve my fitness and maintain my body fat percentage at a level that is appropriate.

I haven't settled on an exact strength training plan yet, but more than likely it will be something I can ease into, most likely with body weight routines. Maybe I'll even start off by actually completing the Hundred Push Up Challenge that I started twice last year.

*To be fair to WeightWatchers, they do mention the importance of exercise, mostly cardio, in their materials. Any lack of exercise of any type during my weight loss was strictly my (lack of) doing.

Tomorrow: Goal #3: Eating Well

2009 Goal #1: Run A 5K

[It is traditional for nearly everyone to make resolutions or set goals for the new year. Over the next few posts, I will be discussing my top goals for 2009.]

Back in 2007, I participated in my first official 5K race. I walked the entire way. Last year I tried another 5K and managed to run about half the distance and even managed not to come in last! So this year my goal is to run an entire 5K race from start to finish.

The 5K I've chosen is the Shirley Mae Run in Atlantic City, NJ which benefits the Shirley Mae Breast Cancer Assistance Fund, a non-profit that benefits patients in Southeastern New Jersey who have been diagnosed with breast cancer and who demonstrate financial need. This is the same 5K I participated in last year, and I'm looking forward to doing it again.

Traditionally held the day before Mother's Day on the Atlantic City Boardwalk, the Shirley Mae Run (and the Gilda's Club Walk) celebrates the survivors of breast cancer while remembering those that have passed. It's a great event for a great cause.

As the spring draws closer I'll be formulating my training plan, but at the moment I'm leaning towards the popular Couch to 5K program (C25K) that can be found at the Cool Running web site. I'll be sure to keep everyone posted.

Tomorrow: Goal #2: Lose the Fat

My Goals For 2009

As is traditional for this time of year, I've set a few goals for myself for the new year. Over the next few days I plan on sharing them with you and look forward to your comments. I also invite you to share some of your goals for 2009.