Today made 792 miles so far.

Okay........Today's trip to work makes 792 total miles for the year. Thats 36 trips.
My goal of 2000 miles is a bit steep considering i will be away from work for a month due to vacation and business trips.
Why did i pick 2000 as my goal? I guess its the same way i picked 1000 last year. No rhyme or reason, lol.

I started biking in February this year. Only on the days that it was above freezing. Dont want to hit any ice and go down. At 45 the bones heal a little slower, lol.

Anyway thats where i stand. I usually bike to work 3 days a week. That should take me well into November. Lets hope for a mild fall.
At first you would think that riding a bicycle in the mid 30's is insane. But the secret is dressing properly. I invested in a pair of thermal bicycle tights(my kids will NOT be seen in public with me when i wear them). Im not crazy how they look but theyre amazing as far as protecting you from the elements. On top i wear a few long sleeve shirts and a windbreaker. Heavy gloves and plastic bags over my socks inside my shoes to block the wind. Thats all it takes.
So many excuses can be made for not doing it but im done making excuses. Been there, done that.
And the kicker is the gas savings!

This years goal.

As i've mentioned I take my bike to work sometimes to get a little exercise. Last year i competed 1000 miles total. Starting last july 4th and ending around October.

This years goal is now 2000 miles! I've invested in a pair of winter cycling tights and a ski mask. It works great and as long as i dont do any banking on the way home I usually dont have a problem, lol.

I was scanning Craigslist and saw an ad for a woman who stated she gained too much weight over the winter and was looking for a treadmill. I contacted her, told her about myself and asked her if she ever thought about just walking outside. She told me thats a good idea and she will start soon. Wouldnt it be nice if we could lose weight just by thinking about it? I mean all the time we spend online reading about it(this blog included), buying equipment, "new" diet fads(that are always better than the last diet fad) and just general information gathering. Its easy! We can do it in our pajamas at anytime. The drive to do all this research might be finding out most of our clothes dont fit anymore.

Honestly...............There's an old formula that holds true. Calories in = calories out. Stop wasting the whole day reading about it. Get out and do it.

Back on track!!!!!!

Ok. Time to take control once again. The scale weighed me in at 184 the other day. About 4 pounds more than im comfortable with. Actually ive learned that the scale isnt always the best way to keep track of weight. The way my clothes fit is a better way of keeping myself in check. The scale is just a tool. My 34 jeans are getting really tight. I refuse to buy a bigger size and im NOT making the mistake of buying sweat pants.
Im not waiting and watching all 50 lbs come back on. Ive been there, done that and it sucks. Instead im starting to get back on track now. The weather is starting to warm a little here in New York so im starting to take the bicycle to work again. Just three days a week is good. That coupled with putting the breaks on with the junk food. Which means starting up my regular trips to the fruit/vegetable market. Preparing food to eat before hand and keeping it in the fridge. This way when i get home from work i have something healthy waiting for me. Instead of hitting the cookie jar or noshing on garbage.

Another week has gone by. Its amazing how time seems to move faster around the holiday season. Ah, the stress of it all, lol.

Nothing much has changed. I weighed in at 179 this morning and my clothes are still tight. I dont want to fall into the same trap i did when i initially lost the weight. I was so focused on what the scale said..........I wasn't noticing how horrible i looked.
When i first lost the weight people would ask me if i was "okay". If i was sick or had some sort of condition that would result in the weight loss. I thought they were crazy. Recently i saw a picture of myself about a year or so ago. I looked like a skeleton with hair! My face was drawn, skin was hanging off my bones. My body had the shape of a pear.
The bicycling got rid of all that. But now that im not biking, my muscle mass is dropping. The treadmill is boring, the nordic track skier is a great workout but its brutal. Getting on it is a chore. I havent developed the discipline necessary to just do it.
At least i started wight light dumbells this morning. Trying to ease into ceveloping a habit of doing something each morning.

Ok, this is frustrating!

I stopped bicycling to work about a month or so ago because its too cold in the mornings. Now my pants are getting pretty tight around the waist and my shirts have a little less room in them. The frustrating part is im still basically the same weight. Whats happened is Ive lost the muscle mass in my legs and have replaced it with fat around my gut! The treadmill isnt cutting it as far as the exercise i would get by biking. I refuse to put on a larger pair of pants. Wearing the tight ones are a reminder to me that things arent going so well at this point in time and not to give up on my new habits.

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!

The day has finally arrived! A day where everyone is expected to eat until theyre busting at the seams. Sitting down at a table full of so many different side dishes.......its hard not to taste a little of each. Leaving you with a pretty big pile on the plate.
I almost started my disaster about 10 minutes ago. I was having my morning coffee and thought since it was going to be a bad day food wise, i might as well dive in with both feet. There was a chocolate bundt cake on the counter in my home. I cut a small piece and was about to take a bite for breakfast. So i sliced a piece, put the rest of the cake away and put the knife in the sink.
I was about to bite into it when i froze and thought to myself........Do i really want this now?........I mean its nutritionally empty. It is chocolate and its early. I KNOW im going to feel horrible after i eat. So i brought it up to my mouth.....took a deep breath through my nose. Smelled the chocolate and then promptly tossed it in the garbage. Im not a fan of wasting food. Its just my personal testing i do to myself from time to time. To stop the automatic, thoughtless way of eating. I then opened the cabinet and took a handfull of cereal. No, it wasnt chocolate cereal, it was blueberry shreaded wheat.

Again, a happy and healthy to everyone......

How I lost it.

A few people had asked me via email how i lost the weight. It was Jenny Craig...... but the second time around. The first time i lost with them was around 7 years ago.
Now my overall thinking about eating has changed. Theres no more "waiting" for the diet to be over. Now the word "diet" to me means what type of foods i eat on a regular basis. It used to mean something i would do on a temporary basis.
Yes i do cheat at times. But i put the brakes on as soon as i start feeling ucomfortable in my clothes. The way things used to work was like this.
I would lose the weight. Then after a short while i would start slipping back into my old habits. I would watch the weight slowly start coming back. Then theres a point where i was out of control. Falling in an uncontrolled spiral. Knowing what was happening but unable to stop.
I know the problems people who battle with their weight have. I was there. A constant reminder to me is the little love handles i have. It was alot worse when i first lost it. When i used to do pushups i could see my belly flab doing its own pushup. Yes it was disturbing to me. But since then i have firmed up. But the little handles i have at my sides will never go away. When i put on my jeans and look in the mirror, they're my constant reminder of where i was and where i will never return.