Closing in on the goal

Little by little I am shrinking, and that's a good thing. Well, shrinking in some ways, but I won't get into that here, though I could. Anyhow, the latest weigh-in was Wednesday, Feb. 24.

Again I managed to NOT gain weight. I dropped two more pounds. This places me at a cool 200 pounds and down 36 from when I started Operation 40 nearly four months ago. I can smell the goal and it's like a nice Papa John's pizza. I only am using that as a metaphor, people :)

I figure I will hit the mark within two weeks. At that point I will keep going and see how much I lose by the end of April. Then I plan on starting another six-month trek to toning my muscles, but more on that later.

I'm getting my boyish figure back

I dived (yes, that is the correct useage, lol) into my closet last weekend to see what I could see. What I saw were smaller pairs of pants, some 40-inch waist and another 38-incher.

For a while I had been in 44s, and some dress pants I believe were up to 46. I was typically in 36s while growing up.

Well, I tried the 40s and they fit nicely, but I knew I'd still need a belt. Then came the 38s and boom, they fit, too, with me still needing a belt. They were a bit more snug and I figure I am in between a 36 and a 38, or in other words a 37, which you can't find.

This is spectacular news. In time I can get rid of the big pants and buy new ones. For now, under my budget, the bigger pants work just fine.

Now to squeeze into that thong. Just kidding!

Another weigh-in and still successful

Another Tuesday rolled by so it was time to strip down and weigh. Oh stop, you think I'd weigh in with a ton of clothes on? I wear boxers for crying out loud :).

The latest weigh-in wasn't as successful as last week's but still good. I continued my streak of losing weight each time and dropped just more than a pound. This brings me down to 34 pounds shed with six more to go to make the goal.

What's even better is I'm 202. I'll be below 200 really soon. That means it's party time. Well, as much of a party as I can have. Maybe some pudding. Ha Ha.

Weigh-in 13 (a little late)

A lot has happened the past week, though on the good side. I have been so busy that I haven't had time to update the last weigh-in. I know, I know. Shoot me!

The latest weigh-in was on Feb. 9. I lost another 4 pounds. That brings me down to a wafer thin (haha, not quite) 203 pounds.

I have lost a total of 33 under Operation 40. I've also lost around 42 since the last time I visited the doctor in late-September.

Still no exercise, but I have the drive back :) There are obvious reasons for this, but I won't go into them here.

Think it's time to get back on the exercise horse

In the interest of being honest and to better give you an idea why I haven't been exercising I'll give you a quick piece of info. I am getting a divorce, and that's all I will go into here. If you know me on Twitter you know the whole story.

That is a large reason why I have lacked the energy or motivation to exercise. It's not that I didn't want to, just well, I didn't feel up to it. You see, a divorce is never fun and there is a wide range of stuff that floats into your head. A lot of it just makes being lazy feel like the answer to get over things.

But, I feel the urge creeping in. That, and I need to start toning again because I'm experiencing some adverse effects on my legs and hip area.

The problem is since I am losing weight, the elasticity in my stomach, hips and butt is lessened. Therefore, the fat still there is drooping some. Now, don't get me wrong, it's not dragging the floor, but gravity is doing its job so there is more pressure on that area, and especially on my buttbone.

Halfway done and so close

Tuesday came and I decided I needed to jump on the scale. The last week went without exercise, as I am still dealing with personal stuff and lack the drive.

But the eating plan has continued. So, I jumped on and found out I had lost two more pounds. This puts me at 29 down three months into Operation 40. I have 11 pounds to go to meet my goal and I figure when the exercise starts again I could reach the mark in about 6 weeks or less.

Here I sit, weighing 207 pounds and I feel great. I'll feel even better when exercise starts again. Lord I need that kick in the ass!

Fighting temptation

The key to this whole quest was staying on track. There could be no wavering or else this wouldn't work. It was easier said than done, though I must say I have not cheated on the program.

Some people think it's too difficult to cut out the things you love. That really isn't a problem for me. Long ago, when I was diagnose with diabetes, I knew my lifestyle had to change or else I would be in trouble.

Of course, this meant the basics, no more sugary drinks, eating two meals a day, taking my meds, etc. My weight wasn't an issue for me until this year and even then I wouldn't say it was a major issue. It was just something I needed to get ahold of and the time was right to do so.

To this point, cutting out all the foods I loved, real pizza, burgers, fries, desserts, was what I had to do to be successful. The first couple weeks it was really difficult, as it always seemed that I saw a pizza commercial like every five seconds on TV or would drive by Sonic all the time.

Eventually this feeling went away to some extent. I still long for a tasty pizza, but I realize that if I cheat I can slide back to where I was. I don't want that to happen.