More of the same :)

Worst... Blogger... Ever...

Sorry!

Anyway, a quick update. Things are going well in general! Oh, you were wondering about my fitness and healthy living? Yea, that's not going so well. I'm pretty much maintaining my weight, despite not doing any 'real' working out (just going for walks and the like).

I would really like to start working out again, as I miss how I feel when I am in the zone and in a routine. I would also like to eat healthier and have a healthier lifestyle. I was doing so well a year and a half ago, and I've just kind of lost that momentum and am stagnating.

So, I'll try to start it up. Going slow, taking it easy, but making progress. Slow and steady, right? Either way, I am happy with myself and having fun in life.

Cheers!

Keep on trying...

Well, I definitely haven't lost any weight since I started blogging again.
I have been having a ton of fun with friends; just got back from an awesome wedding and had a blast.

It's summer, you know how it goes.. hard to stay on top of things and be responsible! For me, anyway.

Last night I went rock climbing which was really fun! and really hard!

This morning, I went to the gym, for the first time in the morning in a long time. It felt good, I have a lot of energy now. I think I should try to do that nearly every morning. It was difficult to get up, but oh so worth it.

Lata.

Holding strong...

Feel good so far!

This is only the second day that I've been really focusing on my health. I'm feeling better in a lot of ways already though. I have more energy, I'm excited about things in general, I'm in a great mood!! I'm also feeling great physically. My body is clearing out all the crap I've been eating and I can tell a huge difference as I fill it up with good stuff.

Woot!

Whew...

It's been awhile since I last posted.

I've definitely not been doing the best job since then!

I'm up to 195.0 lb as of this morning, which is about 15lb above the lowest I got to, but still 35 below my max.

What worries me more is that I've started feeling worse... Just in general. I have less energy, I'm less motivated to go and work out etc, and I'm feeling more self conscious about myself. The weight has come back on very gradually, but it's something that I need to work on.

I've decided to try to start counting calories again. I'm hoping that I can get out of this rut and start losing weight back to a better level for myself. So, the beginning! I've said it would start every week for the last few months, but I'm hopeful I'll be able to hold myself accountable now.

And all the difficulty comes back...

Okay, I have obviously not followed through with beginning this blog and getting back on track.

I have had yet another last minute around-the-world trip, and just got back and am still getting settled in.

Bottom line is, I still need a lot of work on keeping myself accountable when I travel and discovering new ways to stay healthy on the road and when I have no stable life.

More to come soon.

Goals and Motivation

As I'm starting out again, I think it's important for me to reevaluate my goals and motivations. When I first started my efforts to become healthier, I was in a bad place, both mentally and physically. I wanted to feel good about myself and stop the downward spiral before it got out of control. I gained around 30 pounds in half a year, lost it in another half a year, and gained 50 pounds back. I felt awful and was very unhappy.

I'm in a different place now, though. I have learned a lot of things over the last couple of years. I know how to listen to my body (even if I choose not to sometimes!). I have a vague idea of how many calories I've eaten, even without tracking it. I'm usually able to handle my stress without going on a binge, and when I do let go and just eat without thinking, I can stop myself a lot earlier than before.

But, I'm still not as healthy and happy as I would like. I'm still overweight, and I'm still struggling with staying healthy. I have learned a lot of techniques, but I don't take the effort and time to apply them. If I get off schedule and miss a few workouts, I end up not working out for a month or two. I've gained back 10 or so pounds of the 50 I had lost at one point.

My end goals are being healthier and looking better. I am vain. I like to look good. I'm also interested in being active and not getting worn out after 2 minutes of playing with friends or surfing. I enjoy the stress relief and the sense of accomplishment I get from a real workout.

So, my initial goals are to be more accountable. Ease back into working out regularly and tracking food. I'm going to play a little bit with diet as well, as I'm concerned that I've been eating way too much sugar and it's having a huge influence on me.

I would like to get down to my goal weight of 170 lbs. The lowest I've ever been is 179 lbs, and I was only there for a week or so. I can't remember ever being that low before. It felt good. It's a long 20 pounds to go!

In terms of my fitness, one of my goals is to open water swim a popular route near where I live. This swim is about 1.5 miles (~2400 meters). It will definitely take a lot of training to achieve this, but I used to swim a lot so I think I can do it eventually. It will also force me to get back in the pool, something I am not excited about!

I'm excited to move forward and start working towards these goals. I have been getting less and less healthy and more and more unhappy with myself, and I'm excited to be making progress.

New beginnings...

My old blog, Beer & Cheese to the Beach, covered my efforts to lose a lot of weight and get back to a decent level of health. I've learned a lot from that process, and since then I have been reasonably steady in my weight.

However, I've found that maintaining stability and motivation and fitness has been very difficult for me. I swing back and forth wildly, depending on the season, how much travel I'm doing, and what else is going on in my life.

This has worked out okay, but I want to have some stability in my health and fitness. I am currently on the upswing, having gained back about 10 pounds. I am at the highest point of where I feel comfortable being.

I am going to start blogging again to hold myself accountable and use this community to reign in my bad habits and find new techniques for staying healthy.

I started to travel a lot for work, around a third of the year in a hotel room, and that has been a big struggle for me.

Looking back, I am proud of the accomplishments I have made. I have lost and maintained a loss of around 40 pounds. I stay somewhere between 40-50 pounds lost from my highest weight. Also during that weight loss, I quit smoking cigarettes. I wasn't a pack a day for 20 years type of smoker, but I picked up that bad habit for half a year or so, and it was hard to kick.

During my original weight loss, I also graduated college and went through the process of finding a job, moving to a completely unfamiliar place, and finding a way to make it home and adjust my life to the 9-5 grind.

I am excited to be back in the blogosphere and hope you guys can help keep me accountable, celebrate accomplishments, and point me in the right direction. I look forward to participating in the community again and cheering you on as well!

Cheers! I raise my glass (ice water please!) to us and our journeys through life!