I’ve had a few e-mails asking how the health kick is going, so I figured it was probably time for another update. As of this morning, my weight is down to 239.2 lbs, for a total loss of 20.2 lbs in six weeks. Losing four more pounds will put me at my “marriage” weight.
If you want to know what losing twenty pounds feels like, visit your local supermarket and locate a twenty pound frozen turkey. Carry it around the store for a few minutes and you’ll gain a new appreciation of what kind of accomplishment losing that amount of weight is. I did this, and it really gave me the motivation I needed to keep going.
All the extra walking and exercising I’ve been doing is paying off. I’ve already noticed that the muscles in my legs are starting to firm up and gain a bit of definition. My endurance is up as well (I can run almost two blocks now versus the half a block I could run last month), and I’ve heard from several people that my breathing is less laboured, especially when I’m at rest—I didn’t realize this was a problem until Ray remarked on it.
I’m still managing to stay fairly close to the Weight Watchers program, but there have been a few days where I haven’t tracked my points properly, and I have invariably gone over as a result. That’s something I’m going to need to keep working on, especially since the people who have the least success with the program are the ones who never track their points.
There have been some surprises along the way. The first is that I have developed a fondness for the fat-free soy milk beverage. I originally bought it as a bit of a lark for the Green Party smoothie recipe and then found that I liked its taste better than skim milk. Another surprise has been the discovery that soy burgers and tofu are actually quite tasty, and I’m starting to realise that some of my previous comments may have been intemperate. I’ve even been cutting red meat out of my diet as I’ve noticed that I feel a lot better when I don’t eat it. Last but not least, my affection for green tea is also a recent thing.
One of my friends informed me that it’s only a matter of time before I start eschewing all animal products, wearing hemp sandals, volunteering for PETA, and voting Green. I am naturally horrifed at the prospect. I would be most grateful if someone could see their way clear to harpooning me and putting me out of my misery should this unfortunate turn of events come to pass.
Over all, I haven’t felt this good in years, and I’m very happy with how things are going so far. Even if I have turned into a tofu-munching bean curd nibbler. Blech.