October 15th, 2009 - Protein

I had my quarterly oncologist appointment. All of my functions (liver, kidneys, ect) are fine, except, of course, my platelet count. Regardless of diet and exercise, I still hover between 70-80,000. Normal low count is 150,000 and high count is 450,000 (I think pregnant women get to 450). Nonetheless, it's better than last March's 34,000 count. They still do not know why I have a low platelet count, but at least I don't have cancer. My platelet count and past physical history place me in the high risk category. The doctor was impressed that I had lost 30 pounds from our last visit roughly 75 days ago. That pretty much matches my records. This morning I weighed 315. Worst case scenario, I lose 25 pounds before my next visit in January.

Somehow I got onto a protein campaign today. I was reading about how much your muscles scream for protein during and after hard workouts. I know I've been eating well, but I wasn't sure how many grams of protein I was getting. I figured out that I was getting maybe 150 or less grams per day. I eat my beans, nuts, soy, and, less often, tofu, but it is clearly not enough. I calculated that a man my size with a fairly extreme exercise routine should be getting at least 300 grams per day. The standard calculation for people with normal active life styles is 1/2 gram per body weight pound, however, muscle builders need 1.15 g/lbs/day. I put myself at the 1 gram/lbs/day, so I needed to find protein supplements. I found that the best source is a protein shake, but the ones I found at the vitamin store had whey or milk and they were very expensive. I checked out the local grocery store and found a vegan mix (100% Soy) for less money. Each two scoop serving has 31 g protein. My plan is to drink 4 or 5 of those drinks a day and a high protein bar when I workout and 2 when I ride. Your body can only absorb about 40 grams in any one sitting, so I have to basically eat protein during and between meals and push water. The powered drink has the consistency of cement, so I'm sure I need tons of water just to get that sludge through me. Combined with a protein conscious vegan diet, I think I can hit my daily requirements. I hope it allows me to increase my weights and riding distance or time. For an omnivore reference, a good 16 ounce steak is about 120 grams protein. You probably eat too much protein and unused protein turns to fat.

October 14th, 2009 - Matthew Buckingham

First, I felt better this morning. No H1N1. LOL. I also missed the gym again. I hope tomorrow is sunny so I can make the Denver ride. All guilt is washed away after that trek.

I went to work at the Museum of Contemporary Art Denver (MCA) and kind of stayed there for the rest of the day into the evening. There was an interesting artist opening an exhibition tonight and his work with perceptions of time and his use of film looped installations intrigued me. I introduced myself to Matthew Buckingham before things got crazy and we had a chance to talk. He actually got to see the Paul Sharits exhibition at the Greene Naftali Gallery in NYC. How cool is that! He's a fan of my dad's work and I love his work, particularly Cultural Follower. The video piece displayed a 30 minute attempt to interview birds in Central Park. While that was hilarious, the text or meaning behind the piece was really about the adaptation of wildlife to urban life and the different perceptions between time periods and/or cultures. Each piece in the exhibition provokes thought and introspection into your personal perception of time in terms of historical significance. If you are in Denver, I highly recommend this exhibition.

October 13th, 2009 - Sore throat

What is up? Didn't I have a sick day last month? I woke up in the middle of the night with blocked nasal passages. That presents a special problem for me since I use a C-Pap. I had to use saline then Afrin. In the morning, I had sinus issues and a sore throat. My wife always reminds me that I have a diminished immune system, but, after all the good living habits, I reject that. But, it seems to be true. I bet I caught it from the gym. I try to sanitize my machines and I wash after basketball, but there's still too many shared surfaces like the door handles ect... I hope it goes away tonight.

I had an opportunity to hit the gym in this afternoon, but then I got a call from Cheri's office asking me if I could bring in son number 2 for a cleaning. If all goes well, I should have time after work tomorrow. Oh yeah, I weighed 315.6 today.

And now for something completely different... I'm a political science freak. In reference to the Nobel Peace Prize, I suggested to someone that Woodrow Wilson was one of the best presidents of the 20th Century. I was thinking about lowering tariffs, reforming business and banks, and his promotion of the Treaty of Versailles (the Republican Senate refused to ratify the act which angered Wilson and the European allies). Of course, he declared war on Germany in WWI, but he helped end it to. That is what earned him the peace prize. Somehow I coincided the Espionage and Sedition Act to FDR and the internment of Japanese Americans, but I spaced out that the Act was the Espionage Act of 1917. Duh! Wilson promoted the Act making it illegal to dissent from support of the war because he thought it would be bad for moral. It ended up being like a Chaney witch hunt. Clearly not a shining beacon for Wilson. However, if you can find one "political" leader in the history of man that didn't screw something up, let me know.

October 12th, 2009 Rock-tober!

I weighed 316 this morning. Losing slowly, but losing. I had a blood draw this morning. It kind of messed up my morning, so I didn't make it to the gym.

I had to stay around the house to see if Cheri was going to get off early. We had tickets to the Colorado Rockies' (Pro-baseball) playoff game. It was a blast. There was a pop fly with two outs in the ninth inning and the right fielder missed it by 10 feet. That would have ended the game, but they let Philli back in and they won. Rockies season is over. Good thing the Broncos are winning.

Sunday October 11th, 2009 Broncos Win Again!

Not much happened today except watching football and the new "Dexter." The Broncos won their hardest team yet, so that's all good. No one really gave Denver a chance and now they are 5-0.

One thing did occur to me. Back in 1993, I was in pretty good shape. Lifting weights and playing pick up basketball as much as I possibly could. I was maybe 235, but I didn't really look that fat. Anyway, back to the point, all around, legs, torso, and arms, I feel stronger than ever and I'm vegan. I guess I'm just dispelling my own mental picture a weak skinny vegan. Maybe it's just me. I like being vegan; it's something that makes you a little less boring at parties.

Saturday October 10th, 2009 - Extreme Workout

I forgot to weigh myself this morning. I did, however, make it to the gym and worked out for an hour and a half. My weights were 10-20 pounds heavier than normal and I did 4 sets of ten. My routine was just shy of an hour, so I went and played basketball for a half hour. My hoops aren't bad, but I did notice that it was much easier to run around the court. Feels good. I came back into the weight room and considered riding the virtual bike. It was 38 degrees out and lots of ice patches on the trails, so I couldn't very well ride outside today.

I opted off the virtual bike because I want to try for an early morning ride tomorrow and my MCL is inflamed so I wanted to give it one more day to heal. It should be warmer tomorrow. Then again, it's football day and I have a pretty good fantasy football line up, so I may just run up to the gym early and ride 10 miles and come back home to watch the games. Go Broncos; Go Webfreaks!

Friday October 9th, 2009 - Mom's Day

This morning I weighed in at 318, but I know that's primarily because I have this weird unexplained water retention thing. When I was in the hospital in November of 2007, they put me on an IV diuretic and I shed 50 pounds in one week. I know try to manage it with an occasional Flurisimide (Lasix) pill. I don't use the pill if I'm going to ride that day because I lose so much water during the trips and dehydration is an issue for me. I will probably take one tomorrow because I'm going to the gym. I still drink a lot of water on those days, but it still seems to flush the salt and toxins out of my body.

Today, I took my mother and Cheri to see the movie "Couples Retreat" and out to an early dinner. Due to my mom's wheelchair confinement (advanced Parkinson's), I can only take her once or twice a month when Cheri and I are able. Movie and a meal are a safe bet. Today was nice, but I did not make it to the gym. I feel guilty for missing one day.

Speaking of exercise, I may still have a lot of fat to shed, but I feel great. I'm in control of my body and I feel strong all over. It's nice to be in relatively good shape. I'm starting to look more like a football line backer than a couch potato. Even with out losing significant weight recently, my body measurements have gone down where I want them to and up where I like them to. It's kind of like all my fat is gravitating south around my waist. My fat areas used to be kind of hard and stiff, but now they are loose and squishy. Kind of gross and I hope my skin tightens up on it's own. It seems to be keeping pace.

Thursday October 8th, 2009 Virtual Bike

I'm still hanging around the 317 mark. Like I said last night, I've corrected my habits back to what they were in August, so the weight should start to drop again. It was cold and wet outside today. Actually, it started snowing this evening. This was my riding day so I went to the gym and rode the virtual bike for 10 miles.

In case you don't know, the virtual bike has a flat screen in front of you that navigates whatever course you pick and gives you live stats. It even has moving clouds, horses, birds, and other riders. 10 miles on the course I took today should be worth 15 miles on the regular bike. Gruesome inclines and there is no coasting. The gym also had the Colorado Rockies game on a big screen right in front of me, so I watched some of the game. I'm so glad they held their lead. I have tickets to Sunday's playoff game, but it's going to be real cold.

This evening's dinner was hot tomato soup and grilled cheese sandwiches. Boy those sandwiches looked and smelled good. Of course, I didn't have any cream in my soup and I didn't eat the sandwiches. I did have dry toast and crackers. It was kind of funny because I drank a large glass of V-8 for a snack today. I might turn red. One last thing... I tried the new herbal "energy" supplements again and I drank water constantly and I didn't get a headache. That proves it. I was dehydrating myself.

Wednesday October 7th, 2009 - Hydrated!

Last night, I finally followed my own advise and went to bed at 9:30 pm, but I think 10 pm is a more realistic bedtime. I also didn't eat after dinner, nor, in the middle of the night. I also drank water and an iced tea and more water. I have drank 112 fluid ounces so far today. If I can drink 16 more ounces it will be a gallon. Watch, I'll get to bed on time and have to pee all night. However, I did not get a headache today.

My weight didn't change, but I'm getting into the good habits, so now I need to manage my caloric intake and the pounds will follow. I made it to the gym and worked out for an hour. I hope I can ride tomorrow, but I'm a little saddle sore. Uwe, too much info. Night.

Tuesday October 6th, 2009 - Dehydration

Last night I stayed up too late again and then, around 2 or 3 am, my wife woke me up to find out where my car remote was because my lights were flashing. I disconnected my audible alarm a long time ago because my car is sensitive and it kept waking neighbors up. Besides, it has Lojack (a small tracking devise to catch the thieves). Due to one of the side effects of one of my sleep meds, I was not able to fall back to sleep and I finally gave up and got a PBJ because I know it helps. Eating in the middle of the night is even worse than eating late at night because your metabolism sleeps too. In the morning I weighed in at 317. Bad, bad, bad.

This morning, I did ride my road bike down to Hudson Gardens (23 miles round trip). It was about 40 degrees when I left and not much warmer on the way back. I prefer the cold because you can layer up. I usually carry a backpack so I can lose the layers when I need to. About an hour after I returned, I got another headache. Not bad, just annoying. I went online to see if I wasn't getting enough protein or whatever, but the sites I went to said it was most likely dehydration or excessive amounts of soy. I seriously doubt the soy thing, but the dehydration was true. In the cold weather you just don't get that thirsty on the road. I clearly didn't drink enough water on the trip. I did try to rehydrate once I was home, but I already had the headache. When it was hot out, I used to drink a bunch of water prior to the long trips and I drank 56 ounces of water on the trip AND one or two Gatorades. Today, I barely drank 16 ounces on a 23 mile trip. Duh! I need to watch the dehydration.

Monday October 5th, 2009 Monday Night Football

First of all, I won my first Fantasy Football match up (game) ever. I'm a rookie so I'm fairly happy to be 1-3-0. Already making trades to cover Eli Manning's injury. Watching the Broncos win their 4th game (4-0-0) was too much fun. Watching Bret Favre win against GB on Monday night football was also great. Historic.

I made it to the gym and worked out with weights today. I also made a comparison of the last few month exercise routines. In August, I swam 2 miles (66 laps), lifted weights 4 1/2 hours, rode my road bike for 334 miles, played two hours of basketball, and moved heavy furniture for about 6 hours. Pretty damn good. In September, I rode 180 miles on the road bike and worked out with weights 10 times. So far this month I'm at 34 miles on the bike and 1 hour lifting weights. As it becomes colder, I'll have to ride less, but swim more.

Sunday October 3rd, 2009 - Bronco Sunday

This morning I weighed in at 316.9. I am having trouble containing my late night munchies. My breakfast, lunch, and even dinner are okay. It is after dinner that I enjoy desert and, if I am up past 11pm, I have a peanut butter and jelly. I know this is causing my plateau and I know how to fix it. Simply go to sleep at 10pm and get up at 6:30am. The rest of my habits are fine. Eating vegan and exercising are probably the only reason I have not started gaining weight, but they are not passports to overeating.

I think this is the hardest part about dieting; trying to climb off a plateau or stop gaining weight after a successful run at losing weight. Normally, this would be the time I start gaining the weight back and could go as far as to gaining an extra five or ten pounds through the holidays. This is what I call the yoYO effect. You lose; you gain; and you gain just a little more. That is how most people become morbidly or super morbidly obese. BUT, I am not going to do that. I have come way too far to be satisfied now.

This being Monday lunch time, I should say that I did not go to the gym on Sunday because I was still sore and it was football day. As I conclude this Sunday post on Monday, I am on my way to the gym.

Saturday October 3rd, 2009 - Garbonzo's

My weight was 316 again. I have to pick it up if I'm going to be successful this month. While exercise alone won't make you lose a ton of weight, exercise does make you feel healthy, stronger, and it really encourages me to try harder with the calories. There is no secret. No magic pill. It's just watching your calories and making healthy food choices. I've had some luck with the low calorie frozen food meals before and I'm sure Weight Watcher's works because it replaces high calorie food with low calorie food. Simple. The problem with those programs is that they become expensive and once most people reach their "20" pound goal, they go right back to the normal eating habits. In a year or so they will have to do it again. The problem for obese people is that they go on these diets and lose 60 pounds and fall off the wagon and soon find themselves 70 pounds heavier. It's a vicious blow to your metabolism and your psychological well being. It's how fat people eventually turn into morbidly obese people. I know I've said all this before, but it's true. Now, I hear about more and more bariatric surgery recipients gaining back their weight because they expand their stomachs back out. The only real solution is to change the way you look at food. At least for me the vegan diet works and I'm eating better. Getting healthier and feeling great. The thing that I have drilled into my head is that being vegan is for the rest of my life because I want to enjoy the rest of my nice long life. I want to live to 100, but the way I was going I would have been lucky to make it to 50.

Rambling. Sorry. Today I had a mild headache before I was going to leave for the gym so I laid down for a minute and fell asleep. The mild headache went away without Tylenol, so I do think it was the new supplement. I can live without it. It was mostly green tea and other stimulant herbs. It was not an appetite suppressant. You know I hate those. Short and dangerous solution to a life problem. I called today's post Garbonzo's because I had another delicious Lebanese pita sandwich. However, this time I ate half of it for lunch and the other half for dinner. I was glad I had the left over because the family had French Dip (sandwiches made with thinly sliced beef cooked in French onion soup and served on a sandwich roll with provalone cheese and such. Not exactly vegan.)

I checked my visitor log and it shows over 900 visits since July 1st. Thank you and don't forget to show it to the people you care about. In addition, I encourage dialog with friends so feel free to email me now and then at csharits@comcast.net . This way it's a private conversation between me and you. I promise not to make our communication or your identity public.

Friday October 2nd, 2009 - "Sicko"

This morning I weighed 316.6 pounds. It was also cold... for this time of year. The perfect time to try out some of my cool weather cycling clothes. When I left to Denver it was about 40 degrees. I was layered up just a bit, but the thermal jersey I had worked great. It was such a nice ride. Silently slicing through the cool air. The only sound was the leaves giving out beneath me. I was a poetic ride. Overall, it was 34 miles round trip and it was warmer on my way back. Very nice ride. Last night I was up late reading my cycling magazine and I read about proper nutrition on a long bike ride. They said to start sipping water five miles into the trip and don't stop. A mouth full here and there. I also ate a small but nutritious breakfast of granola and a banana. Halfway into my trip I ate a granola/power bar. I ate another one after 8 miles or so. Even though it was cold I still drank two bottles of water. I may want to supplement my liquids with a gatorade like I used to. I had a better trip. I got another bad headache when I got home. I'm sure something in my new supplement isn't working for me. I'm not going to take it for a week and see if I get any more headaches. Tomorrow I'll hit the gym.

This evening I watched Micheal Moore's documentary "Sicko" about health care in America. I know his films. They usually make me mad. Not at him, but at our government and lack of activism from our society. This was no different. It made me sick to see how profitable the health insurance companies were getting and how bad our health care is compared to other countries. Not only did he travel the horror stories of American care, but he traveled to Canada, France, and England to see how horrible universal health care was. It was sick. People get better health care for free. Well, they pay taxes. So do we. He showed people that had been rejected care by their insurance and I started feeling lucky. My insurance is great. I mean, I pay the premiums (about half of most), copays ($25.00), and I meat my deductibles. Since I was diagnosed with leukemia in 2007, I have never been denied health care in anyway. I go to the best specialists. I go to the best hospitals. I routinely have MRI, Cat scans, PET scans, blood draws; everything and my insurance representatives are like friends. So why is my insurance so nice. I spend about $38K a year on my families health care, but they pay way more for my care and they are always nice and supportive. They help me find the very best physicians available. Why is my insurance so nice? Cheri told me the secret. My health insurance is Rocky Mountain Health Plans made accessible to us through the Colorado Dental Association. Guess what??? They are a non-profit cooperative! President Obama uses it as the example of coops. I really didn't know. OMG! Everyone should get this kind of health care insurance. Even better, have the government help you pay for it. Charge me more taxes. Going into medical debt is far worse. Imagine the financial damage a car accident could do to your family and imagine what people without health insurance do. What do they do??? It's sad that Cuba has universal health care and they are poor. What's wrong with us? If you haven't seen Sicko, you should. Then you will want change.

Rocktober 1st, 2009 - Fresh Start

This morning I weighed in at 316.5 pounds. Let the race begin to 299! I was puppy sitting and doing beginning of the month bills in the morning. I tried to get to the gym later in the afternoon, but by the time I had time I also had a headache and I was very sleepy. I think it may be the new supplement I started. I'll have to keep track and see if that's it. It's supposed to warm up tomorrow, so I may try a bike ride.