The Plan

So, yesterday I talked about the general idea, and the why and what of it. Today, it's time to talk the how, and about where I'm starting from.

To begin with, I am thankfully not starting from my highest weight ever. The heaviest I ever weighed was about 315, and that was back in April 09. I tried calorie counting and exercising more, and got down into the 295 range, which is where I'd been til last summer. Last summer, using primarily Weight Watchers for Men online, I'd actually gotten down to 280 before the stress of the aforementioned personal and professional issues, and I've been crawling upward ever since. The last time I weighed myself, 2 days ago, I was at 302. The goal, as I mentioned, is 220, a weight I haven't been since my freshman year of college.

Now, how do I plan to get there. This isn't just supposed to be a diet - I really want to engage in a transformation of how I approach what I eat and how much. To that end, I'm planning on using Weight Watchers again, and to make a number of changes to my dietary habits and exercise habits. I've arranged these from easy to hard.

EASY
- No more french fries. Potatoes are wonderful and all, but you're almost better off eating two cheeseburgers over a cheeseburger and fries.
- Avoid sweets, like candy and ice cream, except for special occasions. I don't have that much of a sweet tooth, and once I start avoiding them, it's pretty easy for me to continue to do so.
- Be more active in the evenings after work. Maybe this should be a medium for now, with 105 degree temperatures every afternoon . . .

MEDIUM
- Eat more vegetables. Lots more vegetables. Regrettably, I skew toward eating meat and cheese, cause, well, they're so yummy and in a lot of ways, easier and quicker to get than veggies. But, I need to eat a lot of veggies, not just for me, but to provide a better example to the kiddo. You can tell them how to eat better, but actions speak louder than words.
- Go to the gym 3 times a week. I still have a gym membership, but it's been hard to find a time to go. I'm going to try to get up about 30 minutes earlier than I do now, and instead of gravitating to the computer, to head out the door and make sure I do 20-30 minutes of cardio a day, along with some weight work as well.

HARD
- Cheese. Aka fat in solid form. So, so yummy, it is one of my two big dietary downfalls. I can plow through an 8 oz block of cheddar at one sitting. This is not good, if you want to be healthy and at a healthy weight. I'm going to try to keep it to 1 or 2 oz a day.
- Dr Pepper. Aka sugar in liquid form. I need to approach soda like I do beer - have it rarely and then only one or two. As opposed as being the go to beverage of choice.
- Meat. I'm really aiming at having only one serving of red meat a week, and avoiding processed meats like salami or hot dogs or sausages except for special occasions. The idea would be to replace it with other protein sources like beans, chicken, turkey and fish.

Weigh in days will be Mondays. Starting this next Monday, I'll be posting my weight weekly. On a daily basis, I'm going to try to post my WW info for the day, as well as any workouts. I'm hoping that the specter of publicly embarrassing myself will be enough to keep me honest, and then we'll see what the outcomes are.