Back On Track... Without an Extra Day to Spare!

Okay, the holidays are behind me. Well, almost. New Year's Eve and New Year's Day are yet to come, both being days on which I traditionally 'pig out'.

But I have a plan!

So, what is this plan? Go back to doing what I was doing, what brought me enormous success already. After all, I have dropped 31 pounds and the ship is headed in the right direction again (I dropped 4 pounds in the last few days, getting back to 206.6) for those of you who were concerned after reading about my recent 'mistletoe meltdown'.

Because the answer to taking off weight is ALWAYS the same, no matter who you are...

• Eat well.
• Exercise regularly.
• And if you get sidetracked, get 'on track' as soon as possible.

Yes, there is a temptation to simply stop eating - after all, if I simply have Andrea lock me in the garage with a bowl of water and some of Courage's cat-kibble, I imagine I could break the 200 barrier, no problem. But... not... too... smart.

So, while I might slip in fruit-juice-fast to accelerate things a bit, doing something radical is not in the cards... and really unnecessary.

But I am cutting it close.

OKAY, OKAY... THIS LITTLE PIGGY WENT TO MARKET AND HAD SOME HAM!!!

And not some ham... LOTS of ham!

Actually, it's worse. To be brutally honest, I went on a a three-day, industrial-strength, cruise-ship-quality "binge" over the holidays. I mean, I ate everything in sight... and a few things that weren't!

Let's just say that Fred Meyer will be reporting strong holiday sales.

And I'm not just talking ham. I'm talking about ham (with honey mustard)... and green beans (with onion ring topping)... and candied yams (with brown sugar)... and cranberry sauce (with whipped cream)... and baked pears (with ice cream) and...

And? Could there actually be more? Yes! because then I raided the Christmas stockings! I'm talking Snickers and M&Ms and Milky Way bars and fruit-flavored Tic Tacs and Egg Nog Truffles (a See's Candy holiday tradition for over 50 years)... and (for good measure) I washed it all down with a plate of CHEESE - the highest, calorie-dense food on the planet short of injecting liquidfied-lard directly into your veins!!!

Whew!

And (you guessed it) I gained a little... like in 4 pounds!!!! Going into the holidays I was down to 206.0. This morning I tipped the scale (literally, tipped) at 210.0! Now I find myself with 10.1 pounds to lose... in just 17 days!!!!

But, while I fell off the wagon (it's hard to keep you balance holding all that food) I... will... still... make... it... to... my... goal!!!!! I WILL BE 199.9 at my 100 day weigh-in. I admit, I don't exactly know how (I've been wondering which body parts weight the most and would be least missed if surgically removed) but I will get there.

Can you spell g-y-m-n-a-s-i-u-m?

The Christmas Ham is Calling My Name

Everyone knows I'm a BIG steak lover. But what you don't know is how much I look forward to Christmas Day, and for multiple reasons, the least of which being... THE CHRISTMAS HAM!

Yes, some people eat turkey for both Thanksgiving and Christmas... others prefer Christmas lamb or roast. I've never understood this, because I'm a ham guy all the way.

The problem, in terms of my current pursuit of 199.9, isn't that I love ham... because ham (eaten in moderation) isn't going to destroy my progress. It's all the other stuff that goes with the ham that I don't seem to be able to eat in moderation. So, to paraphrase Shakespeare...

To ham or not to ham... THAT is the question!

Shall I risk the slings (honey mustard and cranberry sauce) and arrows (potatoes, gravy, and dressing) of outrageous caloric fortune and indulge my desires in King's plate o' plenty? Or should I restrain myself and nibble my way through a peasant's plate of nuts, berries, bark, and other barely edible fare found foraging in nature?

I'm sure you think the answer is obvious: simply eat a smaller portion of the good stuff!

But, lest you forgetteth (keeping with the Shakespearean theme), I tend not be a man of moderation. And here's the problem...

I weighed in this morning at 206.0... just 6.1 pounds from my goal of breaking 200 for the first time in over a decade... with just 20 days to go! And, when you do the math, that means I need to lose 1/3 of a pound every day from now until Jan. 12... and that's baring another plateau! And hitting a plateau is a distinct possibility; after all, I've endured 3-4 such 'plateaus' during this challenge already... some lasting for 7-10 days!

So Christmas dinner is out of the question. I simply can NOT take the chance.

Because "Christmas" this year is coming on January 13, 2009... and I see a package under the tree with my name on it... and it isn't a ham.

What's That I Smell? Oh, It's...

There's a scent in the air. Something interesting, delicious... and something I haven't sniffed in a long time, at least when it comes to hitting a weight loss goal.

What is the smell?

Cinnebons? No. Bacon sizzling in the pan? Nope. Pecan pie? Not that either.

It's the sweet, spicy, aromatic smell of... 199.9 (or less)!

Not only can I smell it, I can taste it... and I can see it... and I can feel it.

I have used ever sense at my disposal to create a multi-sensory, three-dimensional, living, speaking, breathing holographic vision of success... followed by the actions necessary to make that mirage a reality.

And what I have learned through this very interesting 100 Day Challenge (with 77 days behind me and entering the 'home stretch') it that, that's what it takes to accomplish anything of significance in your life.

If you want to achieve something big, something important, something life changing, "luck" doesn't cut it... "hoping" won't get it done... and "wishing" is nice, but W.I.S.H. is simply an acronym that stands for Waiting In Suspenseful Hopefulness.

Well, I ain't waiting no more. I'm doing. And the suspense this time around isn't about if... it's simply about when.

And, oh baby, when is coming. I can smell it.

In the "Home Stretch"... the Final 4 Weeks!

Here I am, 28 days and counting until the end of my 100 Day Challenge... or is it really the beginning?

After my 4-day fruit and vegetable 'fast' during which I did cheat a few times, allowing myself a little fish, rice and granola, I weighed in this morning at 208.5... down just a few ounces shy of 30 pounds in 72 days... and just 9 pounds away from my goal of getting under 200 for the first time in over a decade!

What's interesting is that, while there is part of me that is scheming about my first "free meal" after the High Performers workshop on January 22, I also find myself thinking about doing another 100 Day Challenge, this time focuses on muscle gain. Because, when I get really honest with myself...

1. Even at 199 I'll still be a long way (30 pounds, probably) from my 'ideal' weight as shown on the charts, and...
2. Arnold lokks pretty good for an 'Aging Austrian', and...
3. I think I'm getting addicted to the feeling of being in control of my eating and my physical destiny

So, maybe this isn't the end at all. As Zig Ziglar would say, maybe I'm just getting good started.

Can someone be addicted to the feeling of having fewer addictions?

I think yes.

Two Thirds of the "Weigh" There

Wednesday (Dec. 10) marked the two-thirds "weigh" (yes, pun intended) of my 100 Day Body Transformation Challenge. So I climbed on my new Weight Watchers scale (I bought it because it measures to the 10th of a pound, and when the final days come it just might be that close) and was rewarded for my efforts with... down 28.1 pounds in 67 days... 4.2 pounds per day.

The far left is Day 1 (Oct. 5, 2008) at 238.5... the middle is Day 33... and the far right is Day 67 at 210.4.

So, to celebrate, I immediately launched on a 4-day "Fruit & Vegetable Fast!" (this sentence usually ended with the words "Ribeye!")

Okay, being on a fruit and vegetable fast really isn't a 'fast' in the true sense since I am eating solid foods... but it is somewhat extreme for me. And it's completely necessary because...

• I don't want to 'glace' at diet success...
  
• I don't want to 'flirt' with diet success...
  
• I don't want to 'date' it, either!

I'm taking no chances that I'll get stalled at 210 (trust me, it's happened before) and four days of strictly fruit and veggies seems like the best way to show that I'm 'seriously committed (keeping the 'dating' analogy alive) to diet success.

More on Monday...

The Power of "Catalysts"

Since my weight is stalled once again (this time at 212.0, for over a week now) I thought I'd use this opportunity to blog about the main reason I've had success on my diet so far, which is...

GIVING UP DRINKING WINE!

This might not sound like much, but trust me... it is. Because drinking wine, while one of the great pleasures in my life, is also one of the most most destructive "negative" catalysts when it comes to overeating.

For example: Most days Andrea an I work what we call the "early shift"... we start somewhere between 5:00-6:00 am, and by 4:00 in the afternoon we're ready to call it quits. Which just so happens to coincide with... HAPPY HOUR!

And, man, can we get happy!

I start getting "happy" with a single glass of Cabernet or Syrah... followed by a second glass of happiness... which is sometimes followed by a third. And that's where the problem comes in:

Somewhere between my 2nd and 3rd glass of happiness, I don't just get 'happy'... I also start getting HUNGRY! And pretty soon the good intentions I had about eating right turn into a wild, crazed desire to eat the bread... the butter... the potatoes... everything on my plate... and sometimes the plate itself! This is usually followed by ordering and devouring dessert and (sometimes) a quick stop at the local Safeway for a "candy-aisle run" (some of you are laughing because we've bumped into eachother somewhere between the Circus Peanuts and Peanut Butter Cups!)

This is why I say that wine is a destructive catalyst. And the only option (for me) was to stop drinking wine altogether. I'm not a "moderation" kind of guy.

Does this mean I'll NEVER have another glass of wine in my life? NO! Andrea an I have dreamed about a two week trip to the Chilean wine country for as long as we've known eachother, and that trip is going to happen!

But I also know that "happy hour" doesn't really lead to happiness... discipline does.

The High Performers Program is On My Mind

It's December 1, and the workshop that Andrea and I are conducting for HPI (High Performers International) at the Convention Center here in Portland next month is very much on my mind... and for two key reasons.

First, being the perfectionist I am - not that I am in 'perfect' (though I was recently diagnosed with a severe case of ARD) I feel an obligation to 'deliver the goods' to the participants who will be there. And...

Second, I find myself thrilled that the steps we'll be sharing (there are 12 of them, in all) really, truly work!

How do I know? Because they're the same exact steps I've been using on my 100 Day 'Body Transformation' Challenge... which has exceeded my greatest expectations (note: I'm still in a holding=pattern at 212.5 - down 26 pounds in 57 days - but feel another breakthrough coming on!)

Now, when we say "12 Steps" we're not talking like in AA or other similar program's which, by the way, we admire greately.

No, we're talking about what we call "The 12 Powers" which include...

• The Power of Crystallization (creating a firm vision)
• The Power of Concentration (putting all your energy into a single area)
• The Power of Clues (looking to the best to see 'the path' they've taken)
• The Power of Courage (having the 'pluck' or 'mettle' to face your fears)
• The Power of Compression (getting more done in less time)
• The Power of Committment (sticking it our, even when you don't want to)

And six others that Andrea and I have been researching... writing about... and testing for several years now. And the time to make the process (along with our new Go for No! Breakthrough performance Club) available to everybody is just 45 days away!

Can you spell E-X-C-I-T-E-D-?