KEEPING THE STREAK

For the second year in a row, my daughter and I were volunteers helping to run a concession stand at a Northwestern Football Game. As part of a fund-raiser for the Payton High School Cheerleading Squad, a commission is earned on all the receipts at the booth during the game. I do not know what volume of business we did, but it was amazing to me, how many people left an extra dollar in the tip jar. There were so many volunteers that very little was asked of me during the game. I was right in there helping to wrap the 250 hot dogs that were prepared before kickoff. During the game, I walked around the stadium, I walked up and down stairs, and I walked up and ramps and I walked in place. By the time I returned home, my step count was more than 20,000 and I had 'climbed' nearly 50 floors. Right after the game, my daughter and I hopped on the subway for the 12 mile trip home. At the precise moment, we boarded the train, the wind kicked up and it started pouring. We were delayed at one station as a bunch of branches fell on the tracks ahead of us. We finally arrived home around 5:00PM. At around 6:30PM, the rain stopped, the clouds dissipated and I went out for an 8 mile urban hike. After such a good weigh-in on Saturday morning, I sure was not going to end my hiking streak yesterday. Another day passed where I have been keeping the streak.

Sure it's goofy, but the headlamp comes in handy at night

Your Food Diary For:

Saturday, October 7, 2017

BREAKFAST	Calories kcal	Carbs g	Fat g	Protein g	Sodium mg	Sugar g
Eggs - Poached	300	2	20	26	599	2
Half Bagel w/Cream Cheese	200	29	6	7	390	2
	500	31	26	33	989	4
L U N C H
Northwestern Eisenberg Hot Dog & Bun	600	54	35	22	1,560	6
	600	54	35	22	1,560	6
D I N N E R
Popeyes - Chicken Strips	360	19	17	33	1,440	0
	360	19	17	33	1,440	0
S N A C K S
Halo Top - Mint Chip	240	44	6	24	440	16
Nature Valley - Oats 'n Honey	300	46	11	5	284	17
	540	90	17	29	724	33
Totals	2,000	194	95	117	4,713	43
Your Daily Goal	3,860	482	128	194	2,300	144
Remaining	1,860	288	33	77	-2,413	101
	Calories kcal	Carbs g	Fat g	Protein g	Sodium mg	Sugar g
	*You've earned 1,930 extra calories from exercise today

If every day were like today...   You'd weigh 214.1 lbs in 5 weeks.
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SWEET 16

Yesterday was my daughter's 'sweet 16.'  She is not quite yet fifteen years old. It was her 'sweet 16' because she joined me in an urban hike that was not concluded until we had trekked 16 miles. 

We did not set out to walk quite so much. My daughter continues to surprise me. She likes to join me in my urban hikes and I like to have her around. I get plenty of practice walking alone, so it is nice to be walking with someone else. Yesterday, it was her idea to walk over to a place called 'Stan's Donuts,' which is about two miles north of our home. This is that part of the recounting of this urban hike which I am pleased to report, because someday she will re-read this blog and be even more amazed. It was my daughter's idea to first walk downtown three miles and then hike back up north three more miles (more or less to return to where we started) and then finally to walk the two miles to 'Stan's Donuts.' This is precisely what we did. We eventually met my wife at Mariano's Market where we all had a meal together. Still we were not done. We walked home from Mariano's. When this urban hike was completed, we had travelled 16 miles throughout the city. That was a 'sweet 16' indeed. 

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This girl, nearly 15, during her 'sweet 16.'

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Your Food Diary For:

Friday, December 30, 2016

BREAKFAST	Calories kcal	Carbs g	Fat g	Protein g	Sodium mg	Sugar g
Quaker - Instant Oatmeal- Maple, 5 packet	800	160	10	20	1,300	60
	800	160	10	20	1,300	60
L U N C H
Kirkland - Pre-Cooked Bacon	240	0	18	18	1,050	0
Cod With Lemon	250	3	6	43	501	0
Fried Shrimp	100	4	0	42	0	0
Butternut Squash	50	12	0	1	0	2
Creamed Corn	100	5	9	1	15	3
	740	24	33	105	1,566	5
D I N N E R
Sushi - Salmon Avocado 1 Roll	400	55	11	17	0	0
	400	55	11	17	0	0
S N A C K S
Crunchy - Oats 'n Honey	190	29	7	3	180	11
Dark Cocoa Melting Wafers	500	55	30	7	102	48
	690	84	37	10	282	59
Totals	2,630	323	91	152	3,148	124
Your Daily Goal	4,279	535	142	214	2,300	160
Remaining	1,649	212	51	62	-848	36
	Calories kcal	Carbs g	Fat g	Protein g	Sodium mg	Sugar g
	*You've earned 2,349 extra calories from exercise today

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       Your Exercise Diary for:

Friday, December 30, 2016

Cardiovascular	Minutes	Calories Burned
16 MILE URBAN HIKE	249	2,657
Daily Total / Goal	249 / 30	2,657 / 590
Weekly Total / Goal	876 / 210	9,514 / 4,130

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The way that I have been (over)eating lately... I should be damned glad that my weight on Saturday morning was 'only' 240.2 lbs. I have definitely been going in the wrong direction lately and I know that I will likely overeat fondue prepared at home this evening. I guess like everyone else in America, I will be making a New Year's Resolution for 2017. Start eating better (again) like I did when I first started on December 24, 2014 when I weighed 309 lbs. 

FIRST DAY OF SPRING ONE MONTH EARLY

The actual first day of spring will be March 20. Yesterday in Chicago we were treated to 'coming attractions.'  Apparently those 36 mph winds of Friday blew away the last vestiges of the last polar vortex and brought Chicago some warmer weather from the south. The cloudless sky was deep blue, the temperatures were approaching 60 degrees and it seemed that everyone in the city was out and about. I was out for three hours enjoying what became a 15 mile walk throughout the city. The sidewalks were quite crowded with people enjoying the day. The unseasonably mild spring day was apparently only a one day phenomenon as today, Sunday, the temperatures are dipping into the high 30's. It has been a long time since I took one of my 10+ mile jaunts through the city - it felt great to be outdoors again. I had become quite used to my elliptical machine workouts. And although a 2 hour elliptical machine workout offers a great opportunity to catch up on netflix videos - nothing beats being out and about in a beautiful city.

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 This photo was taken in front of my favorite retail store in Chicago and shows off my recent haircut.

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Your Food Diary For:

Saturday, February 20, 2016

BREAKFAST	Calories	Carbs	Fat	Protein	Sodium	Sugar
Quaker - Grits - Instant - Original, 5 packet (28 g)	500	110	0	10	1,550	0
Roundy's - Honey Nut Tasteeos, 2 1/4 cup	330	66	5	6	420	27
	830	176	5	16	1,970	27
L U N C H
Whole Foods - Banana Chips, 0.25 cup	150	17	10	1	0	10
WHOLE FOODS. 8497 - CHERRY VANILLA GRANOLA, 110 g (3/4 cup)	480	80	14	10	120	30
	630	97	24	11	120	40
D I N N E R
EARTHBOUND FARM - ORGANIC BABY SPINACH, 85 g (approx 3 oz, two cups)	20	0	0	2	65	0
365 - Hearts of Palm: Salad Cut, 1 cup	50	10	0	4	580	0
Louis Kemp - Crab Delights Leg Style, 3 legs (85g)	70	11	0	6	430	1
Eggs - Hard Boiled - Large, 1 egg	78	1	5	6	62	1
	218	22	5	18	1,137	2
S N A C K S
WHOLE FOODS 7700 - ORGANIC DATE PIECES w/OAT FLOWER, 60 g (2 TBSP)	180	45	0	2	15	33
	180	45	0	2	15	33
Totals	1,858	340	34	47	3,242	102
Your Daily Goal	5,051	631	168	253	2,300	189
Remaining	3,193	291	134	206	-942	87
	Calories	Carbs	Fat	Protein	Sodium	Sugar
	*You've earned 3,121 extra calories from exercise today

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       Your Exercise Diary for:

Saturday, February 20, 2016

Cardiovascular	Minutes	Calories Burned
Walking, 5.0 mph	183	3,238
MFP iOS calorie adjustment	N/A	-117
Daily Total / Goal	184 / 30	3,121 / 590
Weekly Total / Goal	839 / 210	13,445 / 4,130

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total calories consumed 1858 calories

total calories burned (fifteen mile walk) 3238 calories

total net 1380 calorie defecit

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fitbit day 171

26061 steps  

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This is the 'panoramic' view taken with my phone of the Chicago skyline. Taken from the Adler Planetarium waterfront

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