It’s been a while since I posted, but I’ve been plugging away.  I find that it’s important that I go the gym, as often as I can, even when I don’t, initially, feel like it.  Every time that I fight through the urge to stay home and just go, I always feel better.  Doing what is best for my body – or my soul – or my spirit – or my finances – isn’t always easy, but it is always rewarding.

Sorry for the delay in posting.  As I mentioned over at No Credit Needed, life’s been a little hectic.  Things have calmed a bit, all is well, and I’m back to posting.  Rock on, my weight loss pals, rock on!

My wife and the kids went back to school and I was at back at work today.  Man, it’s amazing how weak I can be when I don’t have my wife encouraging me to cook and eat healthy foods.

I don’t guess that I did all that bad, but I did eat a candy bar and some potato ships.  Why?  Well, they were just “in the house” – and I was just too lazy to go to the store and buy something better to eat.  Ridiculous.

I did manage to get in some exercise, but according to my new GoWear Fit armband, I still managed to eat more calories than I have burned.  It’s 8:35 PM, right now, and what I REALLY need to do is get up off of my behind and go for a quick 2 mile walk.  In fact, that’s EXACTLY what I am GOING to do.

My man MBH from over at Deflabbify and I have agreed to hold each other accountable.  Check out his site, tell him NCN sent you, and give him some encouragement.

Now, where DID I put those running shoes?  Oh, there they are.  Let’s go!

GoWear Fit Armband -

The armband fits around the left bicep.  Throughout the day, it monitors your physical activity.  It records, among other things -

• Calories burned
• Steps taken
• Sleep duration
• Physical activity

GoWear fit Display Device -

The display device is fits on the wrist and looks like a watch.  (You can also clip it to your pocket or belt.) Once you sync it with the armband, it will report -

• Calories burned today, yesterday, and for a specific “trip”
• Steps taken today, yesterday, and for a specific “trip”
• Activity time at both moderate and vigorous levels
• Time of day

GoWear Fit Website featuring Lifestyle and Calorie Management System -

Using the included USB cord, users connect the armband to the GoWear Fit website.  Information from the armband is uploaded to the site.  The site graphs calories burned, calories consumed, steps taken, time at moderate or aggressive activity, and much more.  Users can enter foods eaten, throughout the day, and the system will report either a caloric deficit or caloric surplus.  The armband will also track certain goals, such as steps-throughout-the-day or time spent in moderate-activity.  It really is an amazing system.  The GoWear Fit site requires a monthly subscription to use.

If you were wondering, the GoWear Fit is very similar to the BodyBugg device that is used on The Biggest Loser.

Pros -

• The information about calories burned and steps taken is presented in a very easy-to-understand way.
• The armband is relatively comfortable and after a day or two, I can barely feel it on my arm.
• The display device just looks like a regular watch, not some big-bulky electronic device.
• The armband, once fully-charged, will hold it’s charge for several days and retain stats for more than a week.
• I love, love, love the fact that I can track several goals, including steps and activity level.

Cons -

• I really wish the device included a heart-rate monitor.
• Browser support for the Mac is somewhat limited.
• Initially, the software is setup to “average” calories over a three-day period.  You can change that, and record your actual calories eaten for each meal / day.

As I mentioned earlier, I’m really loving the device.  Now, my goal is to wear it, eat fewer calories than I burn, and lose that 100 pounds!  Next week, I’ll take some screen-shots of my progress and share them with you.

The links to the GoWear Fit Lifestyle and Calorie Management System and the GoWear fit Display Device, are affiliate links.  In other words, if you click them and make a purchase, I’ll get a commission from Amazon.  I do not, however, have any business relationship with GoWear Fit.  If you purchase the system through Amazon, you’ll receive a free three month subscription to the GoWear Fit website, provided you sign up for a subscription plan through GoWear Fit.

When I got home, the kids were clamoring to go to the local park, so I took them.  They spent about 30 minutes playing on the slides and swings while I walked an additional 2 miles.

My wife cooked some chicken breasts in the oven and we ate those with some beans and some fresh fruit.  I did have one diet soda, but that’s better than the dozen-or-so that I used to drink.  I also had 10 glasses of water, which always makes me feel better.

Tomorrow, I have busy day planned.  I’m pumped, ready to do this thing, and glad to be in a good head-space.  Weight loss rocks!

According to my GoWear Fit armband, I have burned 3500 calories today, and it’s only 8 PM.  Yes!

I had a great day today, calorie-burning wise.  According to the GoWear Fit armband that I’m now wearing, I have burned over 4,500 calories today!  This is awesome – even if the device is “off” by a couple hundred calories – that’s still a lot of calories burned!

I’ve gone to the grocery store and stocked-up on healthy foods.  I’m going to use a modified low-carb diet – eating lots of lean meats, nuts, green vegetables, and fresh fruits.

If you’ve been reading this site for even a little while, you know I’m prone to “starting over”.  Well, I was motivated by a recent post over at ManVsFat.  So, here I go.  I’m going to give this thing an honest and open try.  Will it work.  Only time will tell.  All I can say is, I have the information, I have the platform to tell my story, and I now have some added motivation.

My goal is 100 pounds.  I’m 5 feet 8 inches tall.  If I reach my goal, I’ll weight 155 pounds.  That’s what I weighed when I graduated high school.  Can I do it?  We shall see.

No more excuses.  No more whining.  Time to get serious.

Rock on.

Starting weight (10-11-2009) – 255 pounds

In my last post, I discussed my desire to abandon the scale and just focus on healthy choices.  Well, if I’m going to use the GoWear Fit System, I’m going to need to have regular weigh ins.  So, I’ll weigh myself each Monday.

Here’s how the system works -

I wear the GoWear Fit armband on my left arm.  Throughout the day, it records the number of calories that I’m burning.  It stores several days worth of information.  Every other day or so, I connect the armband to my computer, log in to the GoWear Fit website and log into my account.  While logged in, I can enter details about how many calories I’ve consumed during a particular day.

The website will calculate my caloric intake and report whether or not I’ve achieved a caloric deficit or a caloric excess.  Presumably, if I consume fewer calories than I burn during a given time period, I should lose weight.  On the other hand, if I consume more calories than I burn, I should gain weight.

I’ll have a more thorough review, with pictures, on Monday – but I want a to spend a few days using the device before I write my full review.  At first blush, however, this is an amazing product.

The links to the GoWear Fit Lifestyle and Calorie Management System and the GoWear fit Display Device, are affiliate links.  In other words, if you click them and make a purchase, I’ll get a commission from Amazon.  I do not, however, have any business relationship with GoWear Fit.

Every single time that I stop eating junk and focus on eating real food – I feel so much better and I find that I’m not really hungry.

It’s been more than a week since I had junk food.  Instead, I’ve been eating lots of fruits, vegetables, nuts, and some lean meats.  I’ve been down this same road dozens of times, but I’m always amazed at how much better I feel when I get rid of the junk and just eat real food.

Usually, this is the point where I head to the gym and just kill myself on the treadmill.  This time, I’m going to try something just a little different.  I’m just going to focus on my eating, spend some time playing outside with the kids – and slowly work in some exercise.  Again, my goal is to avoid “feeling like I’m on a diet” – and just live.

I’m not going to weigh myself, anymore.

I was watching a commercial today.  I’m not sure, but I think it was for some weight loss product.  Anyway, I noticed that the folks in the commercial were throwing their scales out.  It struck me – that’s what I should do.

Even when I’m losing weight, the scale always depresses me.  Seriously, I’ve weighed myself, several times a month, since I was 12 years old.  And I’m tired.  I’m tired of worrying about “the number”.  Heck, I’m tired of seeing “the number” go down, feeling elated – and them immediately thinking, “Oh, now I have to be even LOWER tomorrow”.

I’ve starved myself because of the “the number”.

I’ve eaten like a fool because of “the number”.

I’ve been frustrated by “the number”.

I’ve been appalled by “the number”.

Now, I’m down with “the number”.

Instead of worrying about how much I weigh, I’m going to enjoy my life – and work very, very hard to just be healthy.

I’ll know if I’m losing weight.  I’ll know if I’m gaining muscles.  I’ll know how I’m doing – and I will no longer be bound to that square foot of self-image determiner.

As a concession to the No. Calories Needed site, I will weigh myself, once a year, on December 31st.  Other than that, I’m done.

Seriously, I’m done.

Whew.  I legit feel better.

By the way, I haven’t eaten a single piece of junk food this week – and I’ve spent several hours playing football with my son and working outside.  See.  I don’t need no stinking scale.  Rock on!

It’s amazing how much better I feel when I avoid junk food, wheat-based foods, and starches.  Note to self – REMEMBER HOW YOU FEEL TODAY!

I didn’t get to go to the gym, but I DID spend some awesome time with my son, playing a game of football in the front yard.  I’ve also signed up toe be his flag football coach.  Yikes!

I’m not going to make dieting my number 1 priority, as I have in the past.  Instead, I’m just going to focus on living – and finding small ways to improve my health.  Obsessing about food (when eating it or avoiding it) just isn’t healthy.  Instead, I’m just going to fill my days with stuff to do, and find other things to do with my time than eat junk.

I have decided to avoid the scale, at least for this week.  I know how I am, and if my weight is as high as I think it is, I’ll just get depressed.  So, I’m just going to eat the right foods, get some exercise, drink my water, and I’ll weigh in when I’m ready.

I’m looking forward to hitting the track this evening.  My daughter has gymnastics, the weather is nice, so it should be a great day for a little jogging.  I’m a LONG way from where I was back in March, but I have to start somewhere.

Blogging here, each day, even if I don’t have much to say, keeps me accountable.  So, I’ll continue.  Thanks for stopping by.