Showing posts with label overweight. Show all posts

Saturday, August 27, 2016

BLUE ÖYSTER CULT

During the month of August I have had an amazing active hiking streak - I have not missed a day (yet). Lots of hiking. Each day, I try to find a new trail or park. For the past ten months or so, I have had a free BLUE ÖYSTER CULT concert in Skokie marked on my calendar. A normal person would have driven to this Chicago suburb or taken the CTA (subway). I am not a normal person. I took an urban hike which I extended to 13 miles before I found a seat at the SKOKIE BACKLOT BASH STREET FESTIVAL. The first time that I saw BLUE ÖYSTER CULT, I was a young lad, 18 years old. The date was December 31, 1975. During the interim 40+ years since that first show and the show that I saw last evening - I have probably seen this band at least 30 times. Virtually all of the shows in the past 20 years have been free concerts at various street festivals or 'fests' (for example, Cornfest and Ribfest are two that I remember well). My day started with an errand downtown, and that was turned into a four mile walk. My day ended after the concert, and I did chose to take the CTA (subway) back home, but still I had to walk one mile more to catch the 'YELLOW' line. By the time that the clock struck twelve on Friday, I had walked/hiked 18 miles. I call that a good day of fitness.

Blue Öyster Cult at Skokie Backlot Bash Street Festival August 26, 2016

After my 13 mile urban hike from Chicago to Skokie I found a spot about 15 feet from the stage.

Thirteen mile urban hike from Chicago to Skokie

After arriving home from my Kentucky trip at 2:30AM early Friday morning, I was getting tired, and although I considered walking back from Skokie after the concert, I was overtaken by common sense and took the CTA (subway) back home. The 'YELLOW' line is the extension from Evanston that runs into Skokie. I had always thought that it was fairly new. It is not quite as new as I thought. This extension has been running since 1964. Last night was the first time that I had utilized this part of the subway system.

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210.2 lbs

I weighed 214.6 lbs just one week ago on August 20, 2016

I weigh 210.2 lbs. today, August 27, 2016

I lost 4.4 lbs this week
(I did cut back on my walking - this week I 'only' walked 84 miles)

I have lost 98.8 lbs in 611 days. Today begins Day 612.

I will always be at the beginning of a journey that never ends.

I weigh 210.2 lbs (611 days ago I weighed 309 lbs)

I have lost 32% of my weight since Dec 24, 2015

I have a BMI, body mass index of 28.12

I had a 42.0 BMI on Dec 24 just 604 days ago (Class III obesity)

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ACCORDING TO MY BMI APP... even now, 98.8 lbs less than when I started on December 24, 2014 - I am 'officially' overweight. C'mon, really?
Even f I weighed 186.9 lbs, my BMI would be 25.00 and still classified as overweight!
I will need to get down to 186.8 lbs (BMI 24.99) to finally be considered NORMAL.
There is a possibility that I am not destined for life of normalcy...

Your Food Diary For:

BREAKFAST	Calories kcal	Carbs g	Fat g	Protein g	Sodium mg	Sugar g
Questbar - Cookies & Cream	190	20	9	21	210	0
Oatmeal	300	54	5	10	180	2
Bacon Slice - Bacon	320	0	20	6	420	0
YOGURT ALMONDS	250	25	16	5	23	22
	1,060	99	50	42	833	24
L U N C H
Read - 3 Bean Salad	300	65	0	5	1,500	40
Kind Peanut Butter Dark Chocolate Protein	200	17	13	7	50	9
	500	82	13	12	1,550	49
D I N N E R
Pot Roast Pork	200	1	9	28	0	0
Fried Shrimp	100	4	0	42	0	0
Roasted Cauliflower	100	3	10	1	497	1
	400	8	19	71	497	1
S N A C K S
Dark Chocolate Bar	500	48	34	9	341	34
	500	48	34	9	341	34

Totals	2,460	237	116	134	3,221	108
Your Daily Goal	6,081	760	202	305	2,300	228
Remaining	3,621	523	86	171	-921	120
	Calories kcal	Carbs g	Fat g	Protein g	Sodium mg	Sugar g
	*You've earned 4,151 extra calories from exercise today

If every day were like today... You'd weigh 168.1 lbs in 5 weeks

Your Exercise Diary for:

Cardiovascular	Minutes	Calories Burned
4 mile walk	58	707
13 Mile Urban Hike	195	2,228
1 mile walk	18	148



Daily Total / Goal	272 / 30	4,151 / 590
Weekly Total / Goal	852 / 210	10,785 / 4,130

Ever since my high weight of 241.9 lbs during my recovery from my hernia surgery - my weight has been steadily headed downward - it is down a very significant 31.7 lbs since May 7, 2014

My weight loss journey began on December 24, 2014 when I weighed 309 lbs. For one week, I actually touched down at 209 lbs on December 12th. I came to realize that this was an aberrant false reading, as the very next week, December 19, 2015 my weight popped back up to 218 lbs. This current particular glide down that I am on has seemed much more real. My weight this morning at 210.2 lbs is down by a full 98.8 lbs from the day that I changed my life. I am convinced that this weight is real.

* * * * * * * * *

ALBUMS RELEASED BY BLUE ÖYSTER CULT...

Friday, April 10, 2015

BECOMING OVERWEIGHT - A HUGE ACHIEVEMENT

Since this journey began I have been dreaming of becoming overweight. Huh? You ask. Well, I must remind you that I began this adventure at 309 lbs and was classified at CLASS III MORBID OBESITY. Eventually I 'graduated' from that classification and into 'only' CLASS II OBESITY and then into CLASS I OBESITY. I am currently nearing the end of my membership in CLASS I OBESITY. I bought a pair of 36" waist cargo summer shorts for my next stop on the 'waistline express.' I tried them on last night to see just how far away I was from wearing them. To my, happy shock, I actually could get them on and I could zip them up! Now they are far too tight and uncomfortable to wear (aside from the fact that here in Chicago it is not shorts wearing season just yet) The point is, I do think that there is a chance of me graduating out of CLASS I OBESITY tomorrow when I step onto the scale. If not I do not reach this goal tomorrow morning, it's sure bet that I will graduate from CLASS I OBESITY within days. Graduation out of the CLASS I OBESITY will give me a brand-new classification - OVERWEIGHT. Not that many people would be so happy being officially overweight - but under my circumstances - I will be ecstatic.

I must admit that the BMI tables that generate these classifications are somewhat controversial. At 309 lbs - there isn't a soul on planet earth that would have seen me as anything but obese. At my last current recorded weight, 229.6 lbs - I do not think that there would be too many people who would look at me who say, "Wow, look at that guy - he's obese." I do somehow manage to wear my clothes well - but when that shirt comes off, I can see that I do still have plenty of extra flab that needs to be David Copperfield(ed) into 'thin air' (pun intended).

STAR TREK: SO VERY TIRED (SIMPSONS SPOOF)

I only have to remember back to December 2014 to be sympathetic to Scotty.

Announcer: "Star Trek XII: So Very Tired"... see the original cast in the latest and greatest adventure!

[three Birds of Prey confront the Enterprise]

Sulu: Captain, Klingons off the starboard bow.

Cpt. Kirk: [exasperated] Again with the Klingons.

[activates communicator]

Cpt. Kirk: Mr. Scott, give me full power.

[in the engine room]

Scotty: It's no good, captain.

[Scotty is too fat reach the engineering computer]

Scotty: I ca'not reach the control panel!

This is not exactly the type of 'bucket list' that's too healthy!

Even skinny people probably have difficulty with
today's cell phones.

Fat AND Happy? That's a myth.
HOWEVER, SOON I WILL BE OVERWEIGHT AND HAPPY!
I THINK I HAVE EXPLAINED THAT UNUSUAL CIRCUMSTANCE.

I am apparently very close to being (only) OVERWEIGHT. I am very excited. I am getting close to tipping the scale at a weight that my body has not seen since the 1980's. Although I did get down to 220 lbs for about 5 minutes 8 years ago - I never saw 219 lbs. This time, I expect to take this journey much further. I still have the life-long dream of a Grand Canyon mule ride beckoning me...if a donkey trip is to be in my future...I still have a long way to go... This is an exciting time in my life.

I still kinda cracks me up and amazes me...

...that only two days after 'discovering' that I weighed 309 lbs at a doctor visit...
...and only 48 hours after managing to eat like a normal human being for two consecutive days...
...I decided that I was going to lose (at least) 100 lbs AND BLOG ABOUT IT. (daily)
...I believe that's called CHUTZPAH!
...Who does that?
...Who does that, and puts their own name on their so-called diet plan, RABBI HILLEL DIET?
...and who names their own program and prints up their own business cards?
...apparently, I do - because I did.

I titled today's blog entry: BECOMING OVERWEIGHT - A HUGE ACHIEVEMENT.
There might be something oxymoronic about that title...

You see, as I am about to become ONLY 'overweight' for the first time in nearly a decade...
This particular achievement has seen me become far LESS huge.
So, in a way, it's a SMALL achievement.
(Getting to 309 lbs - that was an unwise, unwanted, undesired, unhealthy LARGE achievement)
I am glad to be forfeiting that dubious accomplishment!

BMI	Classification
< 18.5	underweight
18.5–24.9	normal weight
25.0–29.9	overweight
30.0–34.9	class I obesity
35.0–39.9	class II obesity
≥ 40.0	class III obesity

My 'magic' number is 224.2. (6ft, 1/2 inches tall) to exit OBESITY.

224.2 lbs will officially classify me as overweight!
The question: Did I manage to drop 5.4 lbs this week? It's a tall order...

VISIT ME TOMORROW AND FIND OUT...
...I KNOW I WILL!

THURSDAY MENU

breakfast one scrambled egg, two sausage links, SHMURAH MATZO 280 CALORIES
lunch JACK'S DELI & RESTAURANT (yep I did go back!)
SCRAMBLED EGGS w/NOVA LOX, PICKLE, TOMATO, MATZO 439 CALORIES
dinner JIMMY JOHN'S bootlegger club UMWICH w/veggies 280 CALORIES

total caloric consumption 939 CALORIES

CALORIES CONSUMED
YMCA 9AM elliptical machine 35 minutes 485 calories

THURSDAY NET CALORIES 454 CALORIES

JACK'S DELI & RESTAURANT: On my return visit, I ordered SCRAMBLED EGGS w/NOVA LOX, tomato and matzo. UNBELIEVABLY DELICIOUS! no, seriously!

more from JACK'S YIDDISH 101
I didn't see this sign during my first visit on Tuesday...and this one is the best of all of them!

Friday, March 20, 2015

TIME WEIGHTS FOR NO ONE

TIME WAITS FOR NO ONE: ANTHOLOGY 1971-1977 was a Rolling Stones album that included songs from the period of their 'Sticky Fingers' release in 1971 through their 'Love You Live' release in 1977. This particular compilation was released only in Britain. TIME WAITS FOR NO ONE was one of the songs on this album and it was originally released on 'It's Only Rock and Roll.' (1974)

I do think that I was lucky that I was able to reverse the course of my life before I ran out of time. A man walking around more than 100 lbs overweight who combines that lifestyle with a life without exercise cannot and should not walk around like he has all the time in the world. It might be better to describe such a person as a 'time bomb' - ready to self-destruct at any moment. This describes who I was on the morning of December 24, 2014.

Here is just the beginning lyrics from this beautiful melodic song written by Jagger/Richards:

Yes, star crossed in pleasure the stream flows on by
Yes, as we're sated in leisure, we watch it fly
And time waits for no one, and won't wait for me
And time waits for no one, and won't wait for me
Time can tear down a building or destroy a woman's face
Hours are like diamonds, don't let them waste
Time waits for no one, no favors has he
Time waits for no one, and he won't wait for me

There is true wisdom in the lyrics of this song. Hours really are like diamonds and we should not let them waste. If I had waited too long to reverse the course of my life, time would have caught up with me. The consequences of my level of obesity cannot be outraced forever - time would have caught up with me. My lifestyle change has been a true 'game-changer.'

Now that I am on my way to losing 100+ lbs,
perhaps it can be said: TIME IS ON MY SIDE

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235.4 lbs

I weigh 235.4 lbs.
I lost 4.1 lbs this week.
I lost 73.6 lbs in 87 days. Today begins Day 88.
I have lost 9 inches on my waist.
My 42" waist pants are getting loose and it is certainly time to start shopping for 40" waist.
My pair of 'Columbia' brand 40" waist pants now fit properly.
A pair of 'LEE REGULAR FIT' 40" blue jeans I have are still way too tight.
For the past decade, I bought nothing but so-called 'relaxed fit.' (a euphemism for fat guy)
I wear a 16.5" neck shirt now, 87 days ago my neck was 18".
I will always be at the beginning of a journey that never ends.
I weigh 235.4 lbs. (87 days ago I weighed 309 lbs)
I have lost 23.8% of my weight since Dec 24.
I have lost 1.7% of my weight since last Saturday!
I have had an another successful week losing 4.1 lbs.
I have a BMI (Body Mass Index) of 31.49 (still Class I obesity)
I had a 42.0 BMI on 12.24.14 just 80 days ago (Class III obesity)
I will LIKELY 'graduate' from Class I obesity into simply 'overweight' in three weeks (224 lbs)
I have two words to describe how I feel right now - very pleased.
...I know how to begin this week...
ELLIPTICAL MACHINE

FRIDAY MENU

breakfast 2 poached eggs, cup oatmeal, prune, strip turkey bacon, tbsp wheat germ 355 calories

lunch spinach salad w/chunk chicken breast, tomato, chicken gumbo soup 320 calories

dinner salmon burger, spinach salad w/tomato, Tortilla Soup 285 calories

TOTAL CALORIES CONSUMED 960 CALORIES

CALORIES BURNED

7AM Chicago Home elliptical 35 minutes 550 calories

FRIDAY NET CALORIES 410 CALORIES

Do you need further proof that Time Waits For No One? Keith Richards and Mick Jagger can provide it with the following photographs.

People age. Time Waits For No One. Keith Richards. Then. Now.

Mick Jagger nearly 50 years ago. Mick Jagger much more recently.
Mick, not even one grey hair? I guess only your hairdresser knows for sure.

Tuesday, February 17, 2015

MAXWELL SMART SAYS - MISSED IT BY THAT MUCH

When I weighed myself this past Saturday, I thought that there was an outside chance that I might slip into a new obesity category. CLASS I OBESITY. I was still 1.6 lbs away.

Today is Tuesday morning, by the end of the day, which will be four days after my last weigh in - I can reasonably assume that I will have lost the 1.6 lbs to be officially in the class I obesity. I am aware that most people aren't screaming from the rooftops about such a dubious achievement. Considering where I started from, you might forgive me for being happy about this.

Obesity classes are determined by BMI (Body Mass Index)

On December 24, 2014 I weighed 309 lbs and my BMI was 41.3 (Obese Class III)

On January 17, 2015 I weighted 284.7 lbs and my BMI was 38.08 (Obese Class II)

I will assume that by days end today, Tuesday, I will be right around 261 lbs or slightly less and my BMI would then 34.9 which would squeeze me into the Obese Class I category.

The next stop on this chart would be to be considered 'only' overweight. In order to be only overweight, I will need get my BMI down to 29.9. This will translate to a weight of 224 lbs.

So, I will have a quite a few weeks to go before I get there.

BMI Classification

< 18.5 underweight

18.5–24.9 normal weight

25.0–29.9 overweight

30.0–34.9 class I obesity

35.0–39.9 class II obesity

≥ 40.0 class III obesity

BMI	Classification
< 18.5	underweight
18.5–24.9	normal weight
25.0–29.9	overweight
30.0–34.9	class I obesity
35.0–39.9	class II obesity
≥ 40.0	class III obesity

MONDAY MENU

MONDAY MENU

breakfast three poached eggs, two strips turkey 'bacon' 280 CALORIES
lunch Panera Bread Turkey Chili Bowl 280 CALORIES
dinner 5 oz Mahi Mahi, Mixed Veggies, Potato Pancake
Organic Cashew Carrot Ginger Bisque Soup 435 CALORIES

total consumption 995 CALORIES

calories burned
6AM Elliptical Machine 31 minutes 410 calories
5PM Elliptical Machine 30 minutes 400 calories

total calories burned 810 calories

net caloric consumption 185 CALORIES

dinner: 5 oz Mahi Mahi, 2/3 cup mixed vegetables, potato pancake, Carrot Ginger Bisque Soup 435 CALORIES

Sunday, January 18, 2015

GRADUATION FROM CLASS III

I am still in a state of euphoria as a result of the quick progress I have been making since I started my lifestyle change. My weight dropped from 309 lbs. to 284.7 lbs. in twenty four days.

And now... The Reality Check

The ICD (International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems ) diagnosis from my doctor when I visited for my 'wellness' exam on December 24, 2014 was CODE 278.01 Morbid Obesity. Neither one of these two words evokes health, and the two of them together are really nasty. Obesity is determined by one's BMI (Body Mass Index)

BMI is calculated by dividing mass by the square of height

Metric: $\mathrm{BMI}=\frac{\mathrm{kilograms}}{\mathrm{meters}^2}$

US/Customary and imperial: $\mathrm{BMI}=\mathrm{pounds}\frac{703}{\mathrm{inches}^2}$

My medical report on December 24th indicated a BMI of 42.0
My height is 6'1" (73 inches)
I have recently been brushing up on my algebra as I am tasked with helping my daughter with her 7th grade homework, so I even checked the math, and I did get the same result.

Different BMI results indicate different classifications. On December 24, 2014 my result put me in CLASS III OBESITY.

BMI	Classification
< 18.5	underweight
18.5–24.9	normal weight
25.0–29.9	overweight
30.0–34.9	class I obesity
35.0–39.9	class II obesity
≥ 40.0	class III obesity

THE GOOD NEWS IS THAT I HAVE GRADUATED.

BMI=294.7 x 703 divided by (73 squared) = 38.9

As you can see I have GRADUATED TO CLASS II OBESITY.

I am aware that it is a stupid thing to be so cheerful about, but I do need to get 'promoted' one class at a time.

My ultimate goal will be to be considered NORMAL. For that I will have to weigh 189 lbs.

My original thinking was to get down to the 'neighborhood' of 200 lbs.

I do not know if I will get all the way down to 189 lbs.
Once I am down to 200 lbs. - maybe then, and only then I could claim I have big bones.
(That excuse doesn't really explain an extra 100 lbs. - maybe it could explain 11 lbs.)
180 lbs. was my weight was when I was 17 years old and in tip top shape.

I think I have some time to think about it!

Another good day eating yesterday:
Breakfast: Three poached eggs, two strips of turkey 'bacon.' 280 CALORIES
Lunch: One 5oz. Roasted Garlic Mahi Mahi 160 CALORIES
Dinner: Two Salmon Burgers 220 CALORIES

TOTAL CALORIC CONSUMPTION FOR THE DAY WAS 660.
YESTERDAY BEGAN WITH A 60 MINUTE 4 MILE WALK @ 4 MPH - 600 CALORIES

BODY MASS INDEX CHART, WITH MY NEW WEIGHT OF 284.7 lbs, AT LEAST I AM ON THE CHART!

There is one other option, but I fear its practicality is questionable. I could conceivably remain 294.7 lbs and simply INCREASE MY HEIGHT to 7' 8" (ninety two inches tall)
At that height, I could remain 294.7 lbs and have a normal BMI.
294.7 x 703 divided by 92 squared = 24.47 BMI
Where would one find a medieval rack in Chicago?

Alternate Plan: Maintain Weight, Gain Height. I don't think so. I will stick with Plan 'A' maintain height, LOSE WEIGHT