It's because I hate overly long blog post titles. I can't seem to think of a better one for this series for this first year and it grates on me every time I type it. It may be silly, but still.
All that said, let's dive into August, shall we?
At the tail end of July, I paid the good doctor (no, not that Doctor, there was sadly no TARDIS there) a visit for a health check-up and blood work. I was weighed, I was measured, and I was found wanting.
…no, really. They weighed and measured me. No? Not funny? Okay then, moving on…
My weight last month topped out at 246, and I had yet another huge convention to eat my way through starting the very next day. Normally this would have been very intimidating to me, and for the first couple hours during my drive to GenCon, it was. I was thinking about how I would track my meals considering I'd be eating out so much, taking advantage of the food trucks, etc. I actually stressed about it for much of the drive until I stopped for gas and something to drink. I walked around a bit and decided that I wasn't going to worry about it. Not only was I not going to worry about it, but I wasn't going to log anything I ate. I would trust that my decisions about food that I've been working so hard to improve for 9 months would actually be becoming habitual. I would pay attention to my food choices and do my best to make good ones, but I wouldn't stress about it, especially with how much walking and exercise I would actually be getting while there.
In other words, I decided to treat this as a test that I am truly changing my lifestyle, and not just paying lip service you all of you and myself.
Throughout the best four days in gaming (GenCon) I ate well, I watched my portions, and I made a conscious effort to not just cram whatever was convenient into my mouth. Sure I ate fast food while driving to and from GenCon, but I didn't supersize anything, and I made sure that whatever I ate for the rest of that day wasn't too much. I enjoyed meals with friends and even had a few beers. I also walked my tail off and logged an average of 8 miles of walking per day according to my Garmin.
Then I got sicker than a dog as soon as I got back and didn't go to Tae Kwon Do or practice for a solid week. Which made me feel like I had possibly taken two steps forward and one step back. So when I weighed myself last night, I was a little nervous about where I would end up.
242 lb.. on the nose. So I actually dropped 4 pounds since my last weigh-in.
Yes, I still have a ways to go, but to me this proved that I'm not just on a diet. Sure I went right back to tracking my calories and exercise, but I'm actually making a difference in my life and changing myself for the better.
That makes it all worth it.
- Tim