Week Seven: June 12 to June 19

This past week was one of the best ones in a while. I weighed in on saturday morning before heading off to the golf course and I had lost 3 pounds this week and weigh 227.5. I now have lost a total of 14 pounds. That puts me at about half way to my end goal of 30 pounds with less than half of my time gone. So thus far I have been able to keep a good pace.

Over the past 7 days I have been doing something active for 6 of them. This past weekend was especially busy. I played 18 holes of golf on both saturday and sunday as well as doing some good old manuel labour clearing some brush off of a plot of land. There is nothing like working in the sun to burn up some calories.

The water only 2 week challenge is now over and I must say all said and done it was quite successful. Now for a new challenge I had a hard time coming up with one this week. I wanted to do something physical as opposed to the norm of having a diet related challenge. I am thinking that over the next 2 week I am going to try to do 40 km worth of exercise. This would include my golf, swimming and running. For running my Nike + Ipod to track my Kms, for swimming I will just simply count the laps (44 laps in the pool here is 1 Km), and for golf I will total the yards of all the holds and convert it to Km and that will count as my Km for golf. Workouts in the gym will not contribute to the Km total. So as of right now I have 2 rounds of golf under my belt for the next 2 weeks.

Well I guess now that the challenge is set for the next 2 weeks I better get to it. Please feel free to provide me with some feedback.

Have a great week and remember:

With will power, dedication and hard work, no goal is unattainable

Shawn

Week 6: June 5 to June 12

Well another week is in the books and I am 1.5 pounds lighter. It was not exactly the kind of week I was hoping for but I will take it. I would liked to have made it into the 220's but I missed it by half of a pound. I am currently sitting at 230.5 down 11 in total from my original starting point.

I am now in the middle of my "no calories from beverages" challenge and I have to say it has been very difficult. I had been in the habit of having tea in the mornings at work to get me awake and because I usually have creamer in the tea I had to give it up for this past week and the next. The first few days were horrible. I had headaches all the time, my face broke out for the first time in forever. The only drastic change I can contribute this to is this challenge. Aside from the physical effects it is mentally difficult as well. I thought not drinking soda was socially awkward but not drinking anything but water is even worse. I don't know how many times I reached into the fridge during the first couple days and pulled out the carton of milk or bottle of juice before realizing what I was doing. Another thing is that not all foods go good with water. Having water with my breakfast is not the best but I guess I can handle it for one more week. Despite how difficult this challenge has been I have still gotten something from it. I will not be drinking as much juices and what not after this if over. If I am just thirsty and not eating anything there is no reason to waste calories on a glass of juice or milk when water will do the job just fine. Even when eating meals I think I will still try to substitute and have water whenever possible.

This time next week I will be starting a new challenge and like always I am open to any suggestions. I think the next challenge should be something physical since all of the challenges to date have been diet related. So if you would like to suggest a two week challenge to me or submit any feedback in general please do so. You can leave a comment at the bottom of the blog, message me on Facebook or twitter @shawn_green. No one has made a suggestion in a while so I hope you are all still reading. Have a good week.

With will power, dedication and hard work, no goal is unattainable.

Shawn

Week Five: May 29 - June 5

Well I know have 4 weeks/1 month under my belt of this whole weight loss business and the result of those 4 weeks is a lot less under the belt on my pants. This past week I had a good week, with a 2 pound loss, even though I wasn't expecting to. I didn't get in the kind of exercise I would have liked to and I also made some food choices I shouldn't have but according to my tracking on fitday.com I was still running calorie deficits so I guess it paid off. I have now lost a total of 9.5 pounds over the last 4 weeks. I now have soem wheels that will allow me to go to the gym in Lab City which is much better than the one where in Wabush and I am very excited to get back into my weight training routine now that I will have consistant access to all the equipment I need to do so. The golf course here also just opened up and I am going to be playing that a couple times every week or so as well so there should be no excuses for not getting in adequate workouts when I add those two activities to my usual swimming and running. I had been doing some weight training here in Wabush but the resources just were not there for me to get in the kind of workout I would have liked so I didn't go as much as I usually would. Now that I have access to everything I want I am expecting things to pick up again and to not have many more weeks with a weight loss of less than about 2 pounds.

I guess the next order of business is my self challenge for the next two weeks. For the next two weeks I will not consume any calories from beverages. So basically all I am going to drink for the next 2 weeks is water. I guess I could have diet soda but I am still soda free so I don't plan on breaking that streak anytime soon. I am expecting this will give me another good boost in weight loss as well along with the new activities I will be doing. This is going to be pretty tough especially for 2 weeks but hopefully the end result will be worth it. Originally this was going to be one of the challenges I sove for the last few weeks when it was getting more difficult to reach my final goal but I didn't get any new suggestions over the past week and I had a hard time thinking of one myself so I decided to go with this one. Like the calories tracking challenge this one was suggest a few weeks back by Brad Coombs. Just a note for this challenge. When I add things such as milk to a bowl of cereal or to my scrambled eggs in the morning I do not consider that calories form a beverage unless I say drink the milk out of the bowl after the cereal is gone, which I won't.

Speaking of the calorie tracking challenge I guess I will supply some final thoughts as this challenge comes to an end. I was most certainly a great learning experience and very eye opening. But I don't think I will be continuing tracking calories online daily from this point. To be honest logging on and inputing all my foods after each meal was a bit of a hassle especially when at work. Over the 2 weeks I learning about how many calories are in all of the foods I eat most often and from now on I should have a good idea of about where my calories are sitting for the day without the use of the website everyday. I am still planning on using to add up calories on days when I am not quite sure where I am at but I will not be using it to track ever piece of food I eat every day. My average calorie intake for those 2 weeks was between 1900 and 2000 which is right about where it should be and I lost 3.5 pounds during the challenge, so overall I say it was a success.

My personal little mini goal for this week is to lose 3 pounds and as a result no longer be in the 230's. I have not been at that weight for a long time probably at least somewhere in earlier years of high school. I can remember when I was applying for my beginners in the 10th grade I listed my weight at 225 and at that time I had lied by about 5 or 10 pounds so it has been a while since I have been where I am today and I must say it feels good even though there is still a ways to go. Of course now that I am losing weight and before long that weight would be correct they don't even tell your weight on the new NL driver's licences, go figure. Oh well, not like I plan on staying at 225 for more than one week once I get there anyways I got at least another 15 pounds or so to go after I reach that point so no big deal.

Well there is a little bit of my history with this being over weight issue. It has been something I have struggled with for a while but now I finally feel as those those times are coming to an end and my future is brighter than ever. Let the good time roll. Thanks for reading.

With will power, dedication and hard work, no goal is unattainable.

Hope you all have a healthy week

Shawn

Week Four: May 22 - May 29

One more week down and time seems to be going by pretty quickly. Though this has been my least successful week so far it was still relatively successful. I weighed in this morning at 234 lbs down 1.5 from last week. This is kind of the area I would like to maintain for the rest of the time I am trying to lose weight. As long as I can average a loss of about 1.5 to 2 pounds a week I will be more than satisfied. Although I worked out every day except Tuesday because I was working late having my smallest loss to date it not surprising. Because I was working late Tuesday my supervisor and I ended up going out for buffet for supper which put me above my required calories for the day. But that said I didn't have a bad day in food because of the situation, the fault is all mine. I could have and should have made a better choice. So on that note I'll take the 1.5 and aim higher next week. The grand total now sits at 7.5 lbs in 3 weeks since arriving in Wabush.
My second two week challenge of tracking all of my calories in and out has been going pretty well so far. It is a pretty handy thing to do. I don't know that I will continue to track them on the computer daily after I reach my goal but I will definitely be more aware from now on. In the long term (i.e years) getting on the computer after every meal or whenever you eat is a bit of a hassle but while trying to lose weight it is a great help and very eye opening. On next Saturday I will begin a new two week challenge but again still continue to track my calories for the foreseeable future anyways.
Well a guess I will keep it short and sweet for this week. I am open to any suggestions as to what my 2 week challenge can be starting next week. I have been given a couple but I they include major changes that I think will be a bit tough this early in the game. I am saving those for the final push when it gets more difficult to lose the weight to reach my goal. And as usual I encourage you to leave me some feedback/tips you might wish to share with me. Just post them in the area at the bottom of the blog, my facebook inbox or via twitter @shawn_green. I like knowing there are people out there following along so the more feedback the better.

Thanks for read and as always remember

With will power, dedication and hard work, no goal is unattainable

Have a good healthy week folks

Shawn

Week Three: May 15 - 22

Another week has come and passed and I must label this past week as a successful one. I am one day late posting this week but none the less I weighed in yesterday morning at 235.5 lbs. That means over the past 7 days I lost 2.5 lbs for a grand total of 6 over the first two weeks. Also as of yesterday I completed my first 2 week challenge of going soda free for 2 weeks. That said I am going to continue to refrain from drinking any kind of soda for the duration of this blog at least. I have to admit I don't really miss it very much if at all. Sure it's a little awkward at times but that is minor stuff. Right now I have a can of pepsi in the fridge that came with our lunch on the first day of work and at the end of my work term I want to be able to take that same can of pepsi and pour it down the sink. I figure if I have access and still chose not to drink it it will be more of a challenge than just not buying it. Because lets face it I am going to go places where pop will be available so I have to be able to turn it down even when it is there opposed to not drinking it simply because there is none.
So with one challenge over an new one begins. As suggested by my friend Brad Coombs for the next 2 weeks and likely beyond I will be tracking every calorie I intake over the next 2 weeks using fitday.com. I started keeping track today with my breakfast which consisted of a total of 582 calories. Not only am I going to track foods and calories but activities as well. This is a fantastic site as far as I can tell thus far. It give you a recommended daily calorie intake based on the profile you create, allows you to track your calories in (food) and calories out (Activity/exercise). The goal is to have more calories out in the run of a day than in. Oh and I forgot to mention the best part of the site, its completely free.
Well I guess that is all for this week. I encourage everyone to keep reading and leave comments/feedback either at the bottom of the blog, in my facebook inbox or on twitter to @shawn_green.

And as always,

With will power, dedication and hard work, no goal is unattainable.

Take Care until next week.

Week Two: May 8 - 15

Well better a bit later than never. I would have to say I would consider week one of sixteen an over whelming success. I weighed in this morning as 238 lbs down 3.5 from my starting weight. The no soda challenge is half over and I must admit it has not been easy. The very first day of the challenge I went out to my cousins for bbq and of course everyone else had a can of drink with their food. But I guess that is the whole point of the challenge, to be able to resist temptation. I was super surprised when I stepped on the scale this morning and saw such a good number. My trainer Blair said that a good rate to lose weight is at about 2 lbs per week so I am almost a week ahead of schedule. I was so surprised because I really didn't get in any intense workouts this week. On Sunday had my first workout here in the Gym which is more like a graveyard for workout equipment in from the industrial revolution. Needless to say I was out of my element for that workout compared to my nice gym in St. John's. I am lucky that my workouts require very little complex equipment or I wouldn't have a chance. I also worked out today and was a little more comfortable. besides for those 2 workout in the gym I played basketball one night for about an hour or so and went swimming twice for an hour. All said and done I has at least an hour of physical activity on 5 of the past 7 days which is good but it was just not the kind of exercise I am use to.
I guess it goes to show the importance of diet. Diet was something I never really focused on but for the past week I have been eating smaller more frequent meals/snacks throughout the day and it seems to be working just fine. Every weekday I kick started my day with a good breakfast of 2 scrambled eggs, a slice of toast with all natural peanut butter and jam and 3 small pieces of bacon on some days. I found that it is a great way to start the day and it left me feeling energized when heading to work for the day. Another thing I learned in week number one is that preparation is key. making sure I had enough food brought with me when I went to work for the day was just as important as making sure it was the right food. Since I have to stay in for lunch I have to prepare of starve and I would rather not starve.
Well I guess that is it for this week. Next Saturday I will begin a new 2 week challenge. I have not yet decided what that challenge will be and I am open to any suggestions. If anyone has a suggestion for a two week challenge either a food or exercise challenge then I am welcome to suggestions. You can feel free to message me on facebook for those of you who know me and for those who don't you can look me up on Twitter @shawn_green. Also any feedback or comments are welcome through those same channels.

Until next week remember

With will power, dedication and hard work, no goal is unattainable.

Week One May 1 - May 8

Alright so this is week one of my 16 week weight loss challenge. I arrived in Lab west yesterday at around 2. After getting settled away I took some time to check out pool and weight room here in Wabush. The pool seems fine but I am sure most the the stuff in the weight room is older than I am. However both facilities are in the same building which is directly adjacent to where I am staying in Wabush. I have been to the gym in Lab city before and it is much better but still nothing compared to what I am use to in St. John's. Luckily much of my weight training requires only dumb bells or minor equipment so I would be able to manage here in Wabush until I get my car brought down in about a month to travel to Lab City for the gym. So that was the first challenge I saw in the way of my progress but I think it can be over come fairly easily. The second challenge I have already foreseen it the weather here right now. When I arrived yesterday there is still snow on the ground and it snowed pretty heavily all day yesterday. I had planned on doing a fair amount of out side running but not in the snow. Today seems to be a bit brighter though and I was reassured that the weather won't be long turning around.

Starting Point
I weighed in this morning in the digital generic bathroom scale that was provided in the house I am living in. Since this will be my only frame of reference for the next four month the actually weight in not my focus. Regardless of the number on the scale the only one that truly concerns me is the minus that I will hopefully report next Saturday. That said my starting weight on this scale is 241.5 lbs. I think this number is a bit high consider both scale I used while I was home told me I was about 5 pounds lighter than that. Anyways like I said the only number that really maters is the loss I can report next week. I have little faith in any general bathroom scale. I could probably line up 10 scales and each one would give a different result.

The Challenge
Every 2 weeks I am going to set a challenge for myself. Some of these challenges will continue beyond the 2 weeks and some will not although it would be great if they did. Challenge number one will be to completely cut out soda from my diet. This is a challenge I want to try to keep going for the whole 16 weeks and beyond. So as of today until at least the 15th I will be soda free. That includes "diet" (0 calorie) soda as well.

So the plan for physical activity this week is to hit the stone aged weight room, some running when weather permits and a couple swims.

Well that's all for this week. I will report back next Saturday morning, hopefully with a negative number to report.

Remember:

With will power, dedication and hard work, no goal is unattainable.