Trudging the Road of Happy Destiny

[JohnLarson]

Today has been good. I have stayed off the scale, ate on plan yesterday and fit into what where my tightest dress pants, which I wasn't sure if they would fit after this past weekend eating SAD. I am avoiding the scale until April 1st.

[JohnLarson]

So far so good.

My meals have been fairly simple. Salad, California Mix veggies, spicy brown rice, potatoes with bbq sauce. I haven't made any air fries in a while, maybe this weekend. I have a food challenge coming up on Saturday. Social functions centered around food are a challenge. I ate SAD last week, so I really need to stay on plan. I will eat before hand, but it is a long day and will end up at an Irish pub. I am guessing they will have some sort of corned beef and cabbage special for St Patrick's day. Even just plain cabbage will be off plan here. I have sort of a plan, but it isn't real solid. I might skip this function.

[bunsofaluminum]

So far so good.

My meals have been fairly simple. Salad, California Mix veggies, spicy brown rice, potatoes with bbq sauce. I haven't made any air fries in a while, maybe this weekend. I have a food challenge coming up on Saturday. Social functions centered around food are a challenge. I ate SAD last week, so I really need to stay on plan. I will eat before hand, but it is a long day and will end up at an Irish pub. I am guessing they will have some sort of corned beef and cabbage special for St Patrick's day. Even just plain cabbage will be off plan here. I have sort of a plan, but it isn't real solid. I might skip this function.

Oof, St Patrick's Day is a huge deal in my family, so I fully understand your dilemma. Any chance of treating it like a feast day? Let's hang on! We can do this!

[JohnLarson]

So far so good.

My meals have been fairly simple. Salad, California Mix veggies, spicy brown rice, potatoes with bbq sauce. I haven't made any air fries in a while, maybe this weekend. I have a food challenge coming up on Saturday. Social functions centered around food are a challenge. I ate SAD last week, so I really need to stay on plan. I will eat before hand, but it is a long day and will end up at an Irish pub. I am guessing they will have some sort of corned beef and cabbage special for St Patrick's day. Even just plain cabbage will be off plan here. I have sort of a plan, but it isn't real solid. I might skip this function.

Oof, St Patrick's Day is a huge deal in my family, so I fully understand your dilemma. Any chance of treating it like a feast day? Let's hang on! We can do this!

I ended up eating some lump potatoes (not on plan) and some sauerkraut. I wish I would have gotten more sauerkraut. I did the best I could. If I wouldn't have ate SAD the week before, then I could have maybe considered this a "feast day". I want to wait until I get under 200 before really planning any "feast days". I also bought some sauerkraut and have already had two meals with it. I will have more because it is a big jar.

[JohnLarson]

I have done real well staying away from the scale and not being in "diet" mode. My dress pants that were too tight a few months ago are now a little loose. I haven't tried on my other jeans in a while. I think I am a little away from trying on them. I still have plenty of gut and my thighs have plenty of fat on them. My detours with SAD food has no doubt slowed my progress. I also just can't get motivated to exercise. I will work on that.

In a few weeks, April 6th to be exact, I have volunteered to work the grill at Harley Davidson's Demo Days event with my local HOG (Harley Owners Group). I will be fine. I will have some small boiled red potatoes in my bike and will slide out for a break here and there. I will also eat before I go. It will be a fun time. Even if I am under 200 pounds, I won't be feasting on grilled hot dogs or hamburgers.

A co-workers brother in law passed away this week and he posted pictures on Facebook from times they were together. He posted "Going to miss you big guy". I am not sure how the guy died, but he was a big guy. About the same size I was. I can't help but think that his death could have been prevented. I think he was 57. I hope I can remember this next time I want to consume SAD.

What is crazy this time around is that I don't even know what SAD food I want to eat. There just isn't anything that I am just "dying" to have. Which is what it would be. I have one SAD item that I plan on eating when visiting Des Moines, IA in May on my motorcycle trip. I will also have a little SAD at my Grandmother's. So between now and May I have no reason not to be 100%. I will be 100% MWL, which isn't as hard as it sounds. I have a fresh batch of Spicy Brown Rice, this time with corn, peas, and carrots. Plenty of romaine and frozen veggies. Of course potatoes also. Life is good.

[Wild4Stars]

Glad to hear you are doing well. Loose pants are always a good sign! And very motivating!

[JohnLarson]

Glad to hear you are doing well. Loose pants are always a good sign! And very motivating!

I am dong well, but as you know, me not posting on here is normally a bad sign. I have included too much SAD into my life. Pancakes and Peanut butter have been the major issues. Plus I hit a couple of drive thrus. I am not going to go into detail, all just silly stuff. Last week a co-worker asked me if I was back to eating "regular" food, because I was eating a donut. I was pretty embarrassed and didn't have a good answer. If I was at my goal and physically active, then maybe a pancake here and there would be okay. Even a PB&J. But the fact is, while I am doing good, even great, I am not anywhere close to where I want and need to be. NEED. I need to trim down and be healthy. This really isn't an option. I am sure if I want this above anything else, it will happen.

On Sunday I decided to return to being more vigilant and focusing on this WOE. I have decided not to get on the scale. I am fairly sure I have gained, I just don't want to know how much. I want to go by how my clothes fit and how I feel. I do not want to be in diet mode. I will let the doctor weigh me. I have stayed away from the scale for quite a bit, so that obsession is over. I have also returned to praying about this. Asking God for help keeping me on plan has helped in the past. I did notice that I had stopped doing that.

I am still in my dress pants and my current jeans fit loose, I am still on my newest belt hole, so I don't think I did too much damage, it is just frustrating. I know I can do better.

[jamietwo]

You can do it, John! I've enjoyed following your progress!

I have a friend who says you can start your day over at any time. So if you do slip, you don't have to let it ruin your day. Just start your day over from there! (Or whatever works for you - I just liked the sound of it! )

[JohnLarson]

You can do it, John! I've enjoyed following your progress!

I have a friend who says you can start your day over at any time. So if you do slip, you don't have to let it ruin your day. Just start your day over from there! (Or whatever works for you - I just liked the sound of it! )

I live by that. I also can use it to eat items that aren't good, so I have to be careful. I have a track record of starting over. I am coming to the conclusion that being healthy has to be a higher priority. I have to want this more than anything. The little tastes here and there always cause me to return to SAD.

[JohnLarson]

Yesterday was a stressful and busy day. I considered eating SAD for lunch. I told a couple of people that I am close to what I was thinking and ended up eating on plan at home instead of going out to eat. I am glad I spoke to who I spoke to. I could have easily spoken to some other people and ended up at a buffet somewhere. This was a big deal, I have a track record of doing good for a few days and then messing up, repeating it over and over. Today is going to be a big deal also.

Today is going to be fairly busy and most likely a little stressful. I have another container of spicy brown rice waiting for me at home, which is easily two meals. I also have plenty of potatoes, frozen vegetables, and salad fixings. The buffet will just have to wait.

My food has been pretty simple. Salads, steamed California mix, spicy brown rice. I also made my buffalo fries the other night and had sauerkraut potatoes. The food has been good and I like the food I have been eating. Not really even bored with it. My clothes are fitting great. I am still a bit from the small sized jeans, but my current jeans are very loose. Today I am wearing a shirt I haven't worn in years. Also, at work the other day, a co-worker said something about how big my company jacket looked, we just got these jackets in December, mine was a size 2XL. They had me switch it out to a size XL. They also let me know that they have a size L for when I need it. I do have a lot of support here at work and they can tell I have lost weight. I stopped in on an old client I had not seen for a few months and they mentioned how good I was looking, so that made me feel good. I have plenty to go, but I have came a long way.

[LornaLarson]

Congrats for staying on plan yesterday, even though it was a stressful day! So cool that others are noticing how healthy you look!

[JohnLarson]

Congrats for staying on plan yesterday, even though it was a stressful day! So cool that others are noticing how healthy you look!

Thanks for following this and posting!

[JohnLarson]

I have not been posting much and I have not been journaling either. Normally that would be abad sign, but I have just been swamped at work and at home. I have been pretty close to 100% this month. My food has been about the same. Tonight I had white rice with some stir "fry" vegetables. I have had brown rice almost daily for the past few months, the white rice was a treat.

So tonight I felt like trying on some other dress pants. I had five pair that were a little too snug a month ago. They all fit great. They need ironed, but fit great. I bet they haven't been worn in over four years. So I decided to try in the jeans. The 34" waist button fly 501 Levi jeans. I have six pair that I bought after my first year of McDougalling. Four of them fit. The two pairs of black ones are still a little tight. But the other four fit. They are snug. Not as snug as my 36" 501s were this past October. I had been wearing some loose fit 38" jeans when I recommitted to this WOE.

I haven't gotten on the scale. I am not sure if I will. I was weighed by the doctor's office last week and was 226 fully dressed. My next appointment is May 4th. We will see where I am at then.

I am no longer in diet mode. I have several base meals and don't feel like I am missing anything. I have not been perfect, but I have done fairly well. Eating home is easy. The social aspect of food is still hard. My non complaint items have been minimal, but I do need to be vigilant.

My wife started doing these Hello Fresh meals. She makes the two servings, eats one for dinner and packs the second for lunch. Sometimes I will ask for a bite. Because this is her meal and lunch, it is not an option to eat a whole serving of even get a big bite. So that has worked out. Most of the time it is a very small bite. She has been doing it for five weeks now. We also no longer have chips and junk food in the house. I snack on pickles, pickled okra, carrots, and radish chips.

Sorry for the long post, just felt like I had some catching up to do.

[Mark Cooper]

Kudos to you, John! It must feel excellent to see the results of your efforts show up in the fit of "old" clothes! I imagine those black jeans will feel loose eventually! Doing fairly well (not perfect) is a great place to be - staying out of the pleasure trap AND the ego trap. Thanks for sharing, take care and be well.

[JohnLarson]

Kudos to you, John! It must feel excellent to see the results of your efforts show up in the fit of "old" clothes! I imagine those black jeans will feel loose eventually! Doing fairly well (not perfect) is a great place to be - staying out of the pleasure trap AND the ego trap. Thanks for sharing, take care and be well.

I think fitting into my old clothes is my biggest motivator. I fully expect for those black jeans to be loose.