REFUSE TO SKIP

Yesterday I left Chicago in the morning. My first stop was in Indianapolis. I zipped out of Indianapolis and I finally arrived in my Lexington, Kentucky hotel around 8:30PM. After a full day of travel it took a lot of effort to strip down and put on some walking clothes. Armed with my headlamp, I headed out and managed a six mile hike. It would have been so easy to skip a day. It is such a good feeling to refuse to skip the day.

My day started with the eradication of my scruffy beard that I  had enjoyed for a week or so. My next grooming improvement will be an overdue haircut. 

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Your Food Diary For:

Monday, November 27, 2017

BREAKFAST	Calories kcal	Carbs g	Fat g	Protein g	Sodium mg	Sugar g
Grits	400	88	6	8	1,240	4
Kirkland - Bacon, 6 slices	240	0	18	18	1,050	0
	640	88	24	26	2,290	4
L U N C H
Peanut Butter and Jelly Sandwich	700	55	31	17	286	31
	700	55	31	17	286	31
D I N N E R
White Castle - Original Slider, 8 sliders	1	04	48	56	2,880	8
Read - 3 Bean Salad	300	65	0	5	1,500	40
	1,420	169	48	61	4,380	48
S N A C K S
Fit Crunch - Cookies and Cream	380	27	16	30	490	6
	380	27	16	30	490	6
Totals	3,140	339	119	134	7,446	89
Your Daily Goal	2,907	363	97	146	2,300	109
Remaining	-233	24	-22	12	-5,146	20
	Calories kcal	Carbs g	Fat g	Protein g	Sodium mg	Sugar g
	*You've earned 977 extra calories from exercise today

If every day were like today...   You'd weigh 230.2 lbs in 5 weeks     

WHITE CASTLE BRISKET SLIDER

I was watching some TV with my daughter this past Sunday when a commercial came on for a new product from White Castle: Brisket Slider. It turns out, my daughter loves brisket. I used to love White Castle. I have not been in a White Castle in more than two years. Nevertheless, after school on Wednesday afternoon, my daughter and I walked about 5.5 miles to a 'nearby' White Castle Restaurant to sample this new product. Once we arrived at the restaurant, we ordered one each. We enjoyed our sandwiches and then ordered another one each. And then we had a third one.  Then we walked home. This is our review: delicious. 

Your Food Diary For:

Wednesday, May 3, 2017

BREAKFAST	Calories kcal	Carbs g	Fat g	Protein g	Sodium mg	Sugar g
Egg - Poached Eggs	300	2	20	25	629	1
Bread - Rye, toasted	200	37	3	7	511	0
	500	39	23	32	1,140	1
L U N C H
White Castle Brisket sliders, 3	690	90	23	33	1,904	0
	690	90	23	33	1,904	0
D I N N E R
Taylor Farms - Asian Chopped Salad	560	46	42	11	1,155	21
Chicken Breast	250	0	5	47	604	0
	810	46	47	58	1,759	21
Totals	2,000	175	93	123	4,803	22
Your Daily Goal	3,562	445	118	179	2,300	133
Remaining	1,562	270	25	56	-2,503	111
	Calories kcal	Carbs g	Fat g	Protein g	Sodium mg	Sugar g

       Your Exercise Diary for:

Wednesday, May 3, 2017

Cardiovascular	Minutes	Calories Burned
Twelve Mile Urban Hike	203	1,822
Daily Total / Goal	203 / 30	1,822 / 590
Weekly Total / Goal	255 / 210	2,928 / 4,130

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RED LOBSTER

Sometimes it takes me a second time to order a food item at a restaurant in order to get precisely what I want.  For example, the first time I ordered a Jimmy John's Unwich, it automatically came with mayonnaise which practically doubled the calories of the lunch.  After that mistake, I switched to mustard and have cut out hundreds of calories considering how often I now go to Jimmy John's.  Another example was the first time I ordered a salad at Applebee's, it came drenched in sugar enriched high calorie dressing, and this meal too, practically doubled my calories that I had planned.  These days, I ask for the salad on the side, sometimes I dip my fork in the salad to get a small taste, other times I skip the dressing altogether.

Red Lobster offers a limited number of choices for a low calorie meal.

One must be careful about the various side dishes, sauces, and dressings

that might be added to anything that one orders.

Two nights ago I decided to see what I could select for a dinner at a Red Lobster.  I ordered a Wood-Grilled Shrimp Taco meal which came with Wild Rice Pilaf.  I did not realize that the side dish of wild rice pilaf added an additional 170 calories that I wasn't counting on.  The nutritional guide published by Red Lobster listed the Wood-Grilled Shrimp Taco as 600 calories - but once ordered, it automatically came with the rice which I hadn't realized was not part of the listing showing 600 calories.  No harm was done, my total calories on Monday were still only 1180.

On Tuesday, I had a plan.  Did I mention that the Wood-Grilled Shrimp Tacos were absolutely delicious?  On Tuesday, I started with breakfast at Starbucks and skipped the blueberry topping with my oatmeal.  I made a point of having an 80 calorie Turkey Tom Unwich at Jimmy John's.   As dinner approached my calories consumed were a mere 240.   This left plenty of calories to 'spend' at Red Lobster.  My Tuesday night Red Lobster Meal started with 70 calorie Garden Salad as appetizer.  My main course did include one side dish of 50 calories of broccoli and the high point of my meal was the 600 calorie Wood-Grilled Shrimp Tacos!  By days end on Tuesday, I was still under 1000 calories.

RED LOBSTER GARDEN SALAD, NO DRESSING 70 CALORIES

RED LOBSTER WOOD GRILLED SHRIMP TACOS w/BROCCOLI   $11.65    650 CALORIES

Yesterday, my day began again at 7AM in the Eastern Time Zone darkness at the Marquette YMCA.  I had a little better luck setting the machine for the kind of workout that I wanted.   I successfully set the machine for the resistance, my age, my weight but failed to properly set the time.  So after 21 minutes, I made note of my progress, took a five minute break, and got right back on the machine for another session lasting 24 minutes.  My total workout was 45 minutes and the total calories burned was 627.  Perhaps this morning, when I return to the YMCA,  I will get all the settings correct.

An early morning elliptical selfie...I take an twisted joy wearing my WHITE CASTLE cap when I workout.  I expect it is going to be a very long time before I experience the legendary WHITE CASTLE CRAVE again - now that I am a health conscious fat burning machine. 

MENU

breakfast    STARBUCKS classic oatmeal (no toppings)                                 160 calories

lunch          JIMMY JOHNS turkey tom unwich                                                80 calories

dinner        RED LOBSTER   Three Wood-Grilled Shrimp Tacos w/broccoli                   

                                                Garden Salad w/smidge of Caesar Dressing     720 calories

  

total calories consumed     960 CALORIES

CALORIES BURNED

7:00AM YMCA elliptical machine 21 minutes     292 calories

five minute break

7:26AM YMCA ellpitcal machine 24 minutes      335 calories

total calories burned    627 CALORIES

TOTAL NET CALORIES     333 CALORIES

GREAT EXPECTATIONS

Today, Thursday January 15, is DAY 23.   For twenty-three days I have broken my habit of eating at  McDonalds, Burger King, Panda Express, and White Castle.  For twenty-three days I have broken my habit of eating an unending river of snacks including Hershey Bars, M&M's, Hostess Ho-Ho's, Klondike Bars, Dunkin' Doughnuts, Nestles Chocolate Chip Cookies, Lays Potato Chips, and quite a few other unhealthy things.   (You understand, that it took some real 'effort' to balloon up to 309 lbs.  You just don't wake up one day 100 lbs overweight - you really have to 'work' at it!)

I have some GREAT EXPECTATIONS of GREAT SUCCESS in my quest to look healthy and more importantly to be healthier.   As much as I would like to snap my fingers and lose all my weight by tomorrow - it does not work that way.    My 'BIG' Ralph Lauren slacks which are waist size 48 and were too small, when I first fished them out of my closet two weeks ago,  have become loose.   It is ironic that these slacks which have been patiently awaiting the day when their owner could wear them again, may soon be packed off and donated as they will soon be too big for me.   It appears that their window of opportunity to be worn will last only three weeks. Good. Time to go shopping!

I must remember to manage my expectations with regard to the speed of my weight shedding.   I cannot expect to lose weight going forward as fast I have in the initial stages of my new lifestyle.

A friend posted this amusing New Yorker Magazine cartoon on her facebook page a couple of days ago.   I told her that I was going to use it for my blog.   This cartoon basically sums up the importance of having great expectations, but also emphasizes that the expectations should be reasonable.   I would like to lose one hundred pounds before next New Year's Eve.   I have two things going for me.  I only have to lose one hundred pounds not thirty-eight thousand pounds. New Year's Eve is nearly twelve months away.  I believe that I can manage my great expectations!

This morning started off well.  The treadmill at my hotel was out-of-order.  I hopped onto an elliptical machine for the first time in seven years.  This machine didn't power on.  I had no measurement of distance or calories burned or resistance level.   I know this.  I spent twenty minutes on it and it was a struggle.   Therefore it was a good workout.   My next goal is to start using an elliptical more often and increase the amount of time I can spend on it.   My all-inclusive Days Inn breakfast was two hard-boiled egg and one orange.  (Approximately 240 calories)

My next weigh-in will be early Saturday morning.   
I can't weight!  (<----- not a typo - just a minor attempt at humor)

New Yorker Cartoon by Kaamran Hafeez

CONFESSIONS

It is said that confession is good for the soul.  I will use this post to confess the sins of eating like a moron.   On the road, my lunches and dinners were really not too varied.  Favorite spots were McDonalds, Burger King, Subway, Panda Express or White Castle.   The purpose of this blog is ultimately to share secrets of successful weight loss.   But before I get to that subject I am going to share the 'secrets' of successful weight gain.   Here were some of my favorite meals with the calories as provided on various websites that I checked today.

Panda Express Two-Entree Dinner HONEY WALNUT SHRIMP, ORANGE CHICKEN, CHOW MEIN and an EGG ROLL   1480 calories

Subway Footlong Sweet Onion Teriyaki and Harvest Sun Chips 950 calories
              or
              Footlong Seafood Sensation and Harvest Sun Chips 1050 calories
              or
              Footlong Meatball Marinara and Harvest Sun Chips 1170 calories
             (Jared famously lost weight at Subway, surely he made better choices!)

McDonalds Four (4) Hamburgers (almost never ordered fries) 960 Calories
                     or
                    Three (3) McChicken Sandwiches 1110 Calories
                    (I had thought that chicken was a somewhat 'healthy choice'  WRONG!)

Burger King Four (4) Hamburgers (almost never ordered fries) 960 Calories

White Castle Ten (10) Hamburgers (140 calories per burger)    1400 Calories

Ok, that's it... I have officially bared my 'diet' of the past many years.   In between these breakfasts, lunches and dinners would be an array of chocolate cakes, candy bars and ice-cream.   Now that I have finished divulging my secrets of weight gain, the secrets of my upcoming weight loss are fairly obvious.   STOP EATING THIS CRAP!   My brother, has asked me many times if I enjoyed eating at these places.   My answer was always the same: Yes.   It is time for me to find some new alternatives.

In order to end this post on an upbeat note:  I made friends with a nearby treadmill and walked 1.9 miles in 30 minutes.   The machine indicates that I burned approximately 190 calories.   That is not the amount of calories in one chocolate bar!   It will serve to make me think long and hard before I stick another chocolate bar in my mouth.