Early success on the scale, but first this.

So you may have noticed that  I am being true to my word, I will not go on some crazy restrictive diet but I am watching the food i take in as much as i can and still be human.  I know I've said this before but the number one thing that i have noticed through this process is that a lack of grazing has made a huge impact on my eating habits.

I also must admit that i am trying to have smaller portions when i eat so the plate is not overflowing like it often was before.  I haven't gone back for seconds since i started this.  If i wasn't documenting and was just 'trying to loose weight' again, i would have gone back for seconds on several occasions.

I would have had a hand full of jube jubes at night.  Not the normal handful of a human who might just eat a couple, the handful of a monster who knows that he shouldn't have any so he takes a few more.  Then he eats them quickly so that no one will see him do it.  Oh sure, it sounds terrible to see it written there.  It's a little painful even.  But really there are millions of us like this.
We grab more then we should and scarf it all down before anyone can judge us.  What ever reason we may give the truth is this.  We have judged ourselves already.  We want it, we know we shouldn't, so we have it before you can see it.

It's like Ozzy used to say about people who would repent for doing drugs and would say things like 'I don't know why I did it.'  Ozzy's response was,  'of course you know why you did it....you did it to get fucked up.'

Well the same is true here, we eat because it tastes great (insert what ever psychological reason you are eating for here) and you choose your tongue over your health.  Sure, a full tummy feels good.  Do you know what sucks though.  Grocery shopping, loosing yourself in the stroll and realizing the thing you feel swinging slightly back and forth with each step is your stomach.
People, tummy's are not supposed to swing!

Anyways before we get to the food pics a couple of good things happened this week.

Tuesday there was an add on Kijiji for a free treadmill, just pick it up.  The drive is about an hour so i asked the guy to give us two.
We got out there, he explained it was for the dog while he showed us that it worked, smoke streaming out of mouth while he smiled and ran the track.  I had snow on my boots so i didn't want try it out, it all seemed to be fine.
Emily and i were able to get it out to the trailer, strapped and tarped down, we began our drive home in what had turned out to be a treacherous evening of snow and freezing rain.

After almost dying on the off ramp; we slid into a 180 degree turn with a trailer on the back but luckily I didn't hit anyone, or thing.  We left it in the garage over night.  The next day we got it to the basement so i thought i would take it for a quick run before i cleaned it, it really did smell like dog.

As soon as i stepped on the belt, it stopped moving.  The motor kept going but the belt stopped.  After I opened up the front and back I had no doubt that the dog had been the primary user.  I pulled so much fur out of the thing I was looking for a little chihuahua to make a coat for.  After vacuuming out the motor and moving parts i found that the rear roller wasn't putting any tension on the belt; so with a few turns of the screw driver I was able to get the belt moving.

All that to say that we have a new treadmill now and it's a big help in getting into a lifestyle that will allow me to have another way to help become more fit, loose weight and this gut, have i told you how much i hate this thing?

This brings me to the other really good thing.  By Thursday the new scale told me i had lost 8 pounds.  I was down to 142...and it has held for a few days and tonight (Tuesday night) it actually says 140.  That's a 10 pound loss...yay... something is working.

So Monday night a buddy dropped by and we had fresh cut potato wedges with hot sauce, 

later that night I had grapes for a snack.  Yay.

Tuesday breakfast, 1/2 cup yogurt, toast, banana & tea

lunch, homemade soup and a 16oz glass of milk (2%, for crying out loud 1% isn't going to make a difference ....if i wanted water...)

8oz steak with rice and veg.  We just got the treadmill an hour ago, we've worked up an appetite.

Wednesday breakfast, 2 soft-boiled eggs.

I know last week I made a big deal out of not eating things from a box but i went to visit my cousin so our kids could play together and this is what we had for the kids.  Any parents out there will know that you often eat what your kids are eating just to keep life a little simple.  As far as frozen pizza goes, this one was pretty good actually.

Wednesday dinner, leg o' chicken, baked potato's and carrots, caramelized onions and mushrooms.  yum!

Thursday breakfast, granola cereal and blackberries.

Thursday lunch on a bread plate, left over chicken with left over veg and rice.

Friday lunch platter for the family.

Friday night snack, 1/2 cup yogurt with banana

Saturday morning pancake breakfast, two bacon, three little pancakes and some fruit.

Saturday lunch, a slow smoked 6oz steak

Saturday supper, tuna casserole, penne, veg and a little cheese (the old nemesis)

a little cucumber for dessert

 Sunday brunch.  I know it seems that i should eat again on Sundays but I rarely feel the need.

Emily and i did have a little bit of zucchini loaf as it came out of the oven, sorry no pics yet.

Monday breakfast, 1/2 grapefruit

Unfortunately i don't have a picture of lunch because i was in a restaurant and i don't want to be that guy pulling out my camera at the diner.  I had a burger with a side of poutine.  You're right that shouldn't be good for your weight but the scale says I'm still OK, i just can't do it all the time.

 Monday supper

Tuesday, breakfast was two soft boiled eggs, a slice of toast and some tea.  Sorry about the absent pic.

Now Tuesdays lunch warrants two pictures just because it is so fantastic.

The bread was steaming when i cut into the loaf that Emily had just pulled out of the oven.  I smushed up half an avocado to hold the cucumbers to the top slice.  I then used some of the left over mayo, wasabi, hot sauce from the platter on the other slice of bread to hold the mortadella (my favourite) and the capocollo.  

here is a shot of vanilla ice cream and chocolate zucchini cake that i didn't have but gave to my son.  (you wouldn't know there was any zucchini if you tried it.  Emily is amazing.  She always makes stuff that tastes great and then she'll say, i didn't put any sugar, or this is made with rice or something and it always tastes good, not like when your hippy roommate says I made this gluten free and then it tastes like you're eating saw dust.)   I tried to get a shot with no hands in there but this was as good as it was going to get.

Tuesday dinner, on a small bread plate.  Baked fish, rice and some veg from a soup that Emily was making this afternoon.

I hope to keep the weight off and will keep working hard at loosing more.  So far I do a hundred crunches about five days a week.  I do some yoga depending on my personal motivation and now I jog on the treadmill, about ten minutes 5 days a week with a goal of getting to 30 minutes as a norm.  I have tea most every morning.  Milk and sugar in the first one, any others i may have through the day are usually black.  Otherwise i have several (3-9) glasses of water throughout the day.

Thanks for checking in. 

Scaling the Weight Wall

150.
one five zero.
Wow.
I finally bought a scale, we are going to refer to this as ground zero for the sake of this blog.  My goal is absolutely the loss of 50 of those useless pounds of fat that i have no reason to lug around.

I will not starve myself but i will eat smartly.  I don't eat manufactured (read frozen or boxed) food but i will avoid foods i like that i know are bad in large doses like cheese (my god i loves me some cheese).  The following pictures of what i have been eating will demonstrate my trouble with foods i love.

My new structure will be what i had started just before i heard about the too-good-to-be-true 'Miami Heart Institute Diet'.  I will eat better five days a week, but acknowledge that 2 days a week i will feast. Feast meaning that i won't watch what i eat as closely and i will have a few beers with family and friends.

Before my food pics from the last few days though I need to address Larry and the success he did have with this diet...it still makes me wonder.

It's not lost on me that a man in his mid 60's was able to shed 40lbs in 4 months using this diet.  Although a far cry from the 10 lbs a week the diet promised, it is as good or better then most diets and he has been able to keep it off for a few years.  He know watches what he eats and has always gone for long walks regularly in the evening.  When he was shown the article he said what i would have said, "It worked for me."  and i agree...if i don't see some tangible success in the relative future i will be tempted to try this diet again but in the mean time I will try this.

The most significant thing i have noticed is that because of the documenting i have had to stop grazing. I hadn't realized how often I stop to look in the fridge or cupboards to eat something.  Not even hungry, just bored and sticking something in my face.

Now because I am trying to take pics of everything, i don't want to see all that crap...so i'm not eating it.
Below is the food i ate over the weekend.  As always i have done my 100 crunches a day(except sundays) and some additional yoga or push ups on saturday.

Friday breakfast, water, 1/2 grapefruit, 2 slices french toast

2 slices of fantastic pizza for friday supper 

still full from pizza, there was no breakfast, a piece of toast around12:30, then band practice and plate full of nacho's for dinner was the meal for the day.  Maybe a couple of beer.

Sunday brunch, burton's eggs (bacon, peppers, onions, apple and tomato all in there) and fruit

This is some left over fish from Friday on rice with some green beans on a small bread plate so it may look like more than it is.

Monday the 18th I ended up skipping breakfast, the youngest had a morning doctors appointment so after I took the family to lunch, not something we can do very often, i had their lasagne, it was yummy but there is my love of cheese again so i wont have any more today.  It's 2:30, i will probably have some fruit for snack before dinner...what that will be i don't yet know.

Thanks for stopping by.

B.S. - Before Scale

How I Lost Weight With the Miami Heart Institute Diet Fraud

2013.03.13

My father recently gave me a diet endorsed by the Miami Heart Institute.  A friend whom he has known for over forty years gave him the diet.  Dad said that a reputable doctor in Ottawa gave his friend the diet to loose weight for hernia treatment.

Dad was really impressed with the results Larry achieved and was thinking about starting the diet soon himself.  When he heard me say I was interested in loosing weight he passed it along.  It’s very popular, you may have heard of it.

	Breakfast	Lunch	Dinner
Day 1	Black coffee or tea 1/2 Grapefruit 1 Slice of Toast 1 Tbs Peanut Butter	1/2 c Tuna 1 Slice of Toast Black coffee or tea	2 Slices of Meat (3 oz.) 1 c String Beans 1 c Beets 1 Small Apple 1 c Vanilla Ice Cream
Day 2	1 Egg 1/2 Banana 1 Slice of Toast Black Coffee or Tea	1 c Cottage Cheese 1/2 Banana	2 Hot-Dogs 1 c Broccoli 1/2 c Carrots 1/2 Banana 1/2 c Vanilla Ice Cream
Day 3	5 Saltine Crackers 1 Slice Cheddar Cheese 1 Small Apple Black Coffee or Tea	1 Hard Boiled Egg 1 Slice of Toast	1 c Tuna, 1 Cup 1 c Beets, 1 c Cauliflower 1/2 Cantaloupe 1/2 c Vanilla Ice Cream

My wife and I agreed we would really like to loose weight and liked the idea that we could eat these foods for three days, loose up to 10lbs then eat normally for the next four days.   We knew that our results would probably be less then the 10lbs but even a few pounds would be a good start to finally begin working our way down to the size we were only 5 or 6 years ago.

I started the diet a day before Emily was able to and had my half grape fruit (which I remembered hating but it was actually good), toast, and 2tbsp of peanut butter.

Light I thought, but I am going to do this.  It’s time for me to loose weight.  I had the toast and ½ cup of tuna for lunch.  By the time dinner came I was starved.  3oz of meat, 1 cup of string beans and beets (which I remembered hating and found I still do) and half a cup of vanilla ice cream.  I was still starving when I was done so I filled my self with the unrestricted tea that I was allowed to drink.

My sleep that night was terrible because I was starved.  I made it through to the end of day two and never wasn’t hungry.  There was no way I was going to be able to work out that day, part of a new routine I had started with a friend in the quest to be healthier.  I still wanted to stick with it though.  Larry had had success and I too want that.

I started to Google it.  I entered Miami H and the first option was Miami Heart Institute diet.  I was excited.  I found several more diet sites with the same diet and thought that was interesting.  But the fourth or fifth one down was called: Miami Heart Institute Diet: It’s a Fad But  A Fraud.  It was from a newspaper called the Orlando Sentinel.  It was from 1986!  Almost 30 years ago!  ( here is a link http://articles.orlandosentinel.com/1986-03-02/news/0200290246_1_diet-heart-institute-miami-heart  )  For those who don’t read the article I want to be clear, the Miami Heart Institute is not at all responsible for this diet fraud, unfortunately they field many calls from people about this diet but they do not endorse it at all.

It was the same diet and the article outlined how it gets around and right down to the look f the hand written copied sheet of paper.  I was surprised (Dad did get the diet from Larry who had gotten it from his hernia doctor whom we all assumed had got it from the Miami health institute), frustrated (we had finally decided to go for it with a diet together and it turns out to be a fraud) and angry.  That’s it.  I am going to have something to eat, because I really am starving but this fraudulent diet will still be the start of our loosing weight.

This will be our documenting what we eat, what we take in on a daily basis, and what exercise we do and what we loose or gain.  This is the beginning of How I Lost Weight With the Miami Heart Institute Diet Fraud

Our plan is to do something similar with a safer caloric intake and less beets (no offence to those who love beets, all the power to you, it just isn’t for me).  The link goes to the article that outlines the problems with the proposed diet.  I made it to the end of the second night and found out shortly after the dinner, my wife was working on hers at the time.  I didn’t tell her until she was done the beets because she had spent so much time telling me that beets were good, she was slow to finish them.  I did then get myself a piece of toast with peanut butter but avoided pounding down a bunch of food as some sort of redemption.  Emotional eating is not the answer.

WE will have to succeed and plan on taking as many pictures as possible to show exactly what we’re eating.  Enjoy the rest.

2013.03.14

Here are some pics of what we have had so far.

Breakfast, 2 soft boiled eggs and 1 toast and a tea.

Snack. Pear

Lunch, home made soup with a little rice in it.

I don’t plan on writing a lot in the future but more some quick comments with pictures

While cleaning up we remarked on how it was nice to have enough to eat but not to be full.  It was also nice not be starving or feeling weak and undernourished.

I should give a little background.  We are parents with two kids, one 3 year old and another about to be 6 months old.  Four days ago I weighed myself and came in a 245lbs.  I knew I was overweight but I didn’t know it was that far over.  I am 6’2”; my medically ideal weight is probably around 180lbs, I would be happy around 200lbs.  245lbs, that’s not me!  At least I didn’t think so…unfortunately it appears it is me.

Over the last few months, before I weighed myself, my wife and I have been making attempts to get healthier.  Watching what we were eating, and trying to exercise in the mornings; a little yoga, some crunches and push-ups. 

We eat food that is mostly from scratch; we never buy premade meals or frozen box dinners.  We don’t drink pop by and large or eat chips etc.  We eat meat, fruit, vegetables, and grains - although we probably aren’t always eating the right portions of those things.  Our biggest problem is that we often make food we really like and are always getting up to have a little more.  It’s not that we eat food that is bad for us but rather we like the food we make so much that we eat until we feel stuffed far to often…ok most of the time.

It is 4:30 and I am a little hungry but not the way I was yesterday, I am not weak with hunger but rather have room for the dinner that is to come.  The next step will be to have our biggest meals become breakfast and lunch rather then supper.  I am sure that having your biggest meal at night, when you are about to be your least active leads to fattening rather than using the energy in your everyday work.

I find we often fly out the door with little for breakfast and then skip lunch or use that break for something else so that by the time you get home from work you’re are very hungry.  You made it through the day but you can’t wait to get home so you can eat properly.  Then you eat, and by the time you get the kids off to bed you are not doing much in the way of activity.  I hope to get to the point that I am turning the normal structure on its head with a big break fast and lunch and a lighter dinner but for today and the near future we are sticking with the regular format, tonight will be fish in a tomato sauce with some vegetables and rice.

I will let you know what happens after speaking to Larry who has had success with this diet, my Dad also still plans on trying it out.   I for one will be happy to continue exercising and keeping a better tally of what I’m eating.  Already today, because I know I have to document it, I have avoided several little snacks throughout the day.  This is one of my biggest Achilles heels.  Next move we buy a scale and document frequently.

Here was dinner, a really nice soup with a little rice in the bottom.  Quite fantastic really.  Usually i would have had at least two bowls but today i had one.  I also did my 100 crunches earlier today.