Thursday June 3rd, 2010 - Week in Review

I guess I've been a little depressed to write about weight loss when I've done little but gain weight. I was horrified to weigh in at 332 last month and I switched workouts and tried to watch calories. I lost about 8 or 9 pounds, but I think they are back or all those salty olives have had their revenge. Either way, I've got some work to do. Realistically, I need to lower my expectations a bit. I would like to be back to 320 by July and 300 or less by September. It could have been so much easier if I hadn't gained weight back. Last summer I went from 360 to a low of 313 in the last few days of October.

And then the appetite kicked in or I simply let my guard down. Actually, both are true. I "allowed" my appetite to take control. First I had some bipolar instability and that took my full attention. I gained 6.2 pounds by the end of the year. Not so bad, but I was trying to lose weight. At the end of January I weighed 314.2. In retrospect that wasn't the end of the world and I felt emotionally stable by February. Here is where it gets bad. I was 323.4 on March 1st and I had just sprained my knee. No gym, but the gym is only a small part of weight loss. It's real good for your over all health and improves your quality of life by increasing your energy and stamina, but I still should have been able to control my weight. March sucked. I just couldn't lose weight and I was very discouraged. However, I had stabilized a bit and weighed in at 322.8 on April 1st. Still sliding in April. I seem to have lost control and was eating until I felt full and eating too much.

I know what you're thinking. How can a vegan pack on so much weight so quickly. I recently read an article that compared my food with regular food. My normal 1 1/2 cup of granola with soy milk (and toast) has more calories than two eggs and 10 slices of bacon! A cup of nuts has almost as much calories as a hamburger. Being vegan does not mean you don't have to watch calories, however, being vegan or should I say, a monitored vegan is much more healthy in the long run. By May 1st I weighed 330. Insane. Completely unacceptable, but it happened. I let loose and ate how ever I wanted. I even ate meat and cheese a few times... maybe five or six times. I thought I was going to fall off of the vegan diet. Why work so hard and do without the food you love if you're not losing weight. I'm a resolute vegan right now, but I can see a sliver of meat creeping in. I guess I can't promise that I will always be vegan. For now and the foreseeable future, I will remain vegan. I lost about 5 pounds in May and then gained 10 pounds by being a complete ass about diet. Gave in completely. I am trying to curb my appetite and that is the goal for now. Turn the tables back to losing weight.

The week in review: Last Thursday I worked out and got real sore. Good stuff. I worked out on Sunday and mowed the lawn ect. Feeling good. Went to a family BBQ on Memorial Day and played basketball with my 14 year old son, niece, nephew, and younger brother. I kept up and even surpassed their energy, however, I got so sore I couldn't workout on Tuesday. Today I took Bobby to the gym and had a monster workout. He did too. I'm going to mow the lawn tonight so I don't have to do it when it gets hot out this weekend. I've been reading, writing, and painting so everything is actually going fine. If I can regain control over my appetite I will be in good shape.