During my brief stint at college (hey, school just wasn’t for me), not only did I gain the freshman 10, but the freshmen 20 and 30 as well. My weight was never a problem until college. You’d eat when you were hungry, when you weren’t hungry, and eat at 4:00 AM for a “midnight” snack prior to going to bed.  Pizza, cheap beer, and dorm food every day really packed on the pounds. Prior to college, I was a normal weight, even skinny. When Shelby and I were dating in high school, I even wore her wrangler jeans to a party. Then college hit, and I’ve been pretty overweight ever since. The pounds would add up slowly over time and eventually I found myself 70(!) pounds over. Suffice to say, I felt like crap, all the time. Don’t let the smile fool you, it was induced by a cheeseburger. :)

before

In 2007, Shelby’s weight loss was a huge inspiration for me, and I decided to do my part. Constant exercise and healthy eating was the prescription and I stuck to it like a 16 year old boy clutches to his first found playboy magazine (not that I would know, no sir!). I’d watch every thing I put into my mouth, use an elliptical, or treadmill every day. Believe it or not, I actually RAN 2 miles straight (that was HUGE for me). Sunday’s would be our “cheat” day, where we’d have a slice or two of pizza, or dinner out. One thing I remember; Food tasting AMAZING. When you’re having chicken breast, ground turkey, or 6 oz. of lean beef, anything with flavor was a taste-bud inducing organism of epic proportions. For 6 straight months, this diet worked. My transformation was amazing. I felt great, have a self-confidence that I have had in 15 years, and actually enjoyed clothes and shopping. Shelby and I looked fantastic. I was so proud of us.

afterNow, 2 years after this weight loss transformation, I find myself overweight, again. 2 years of no exercise, a pg loss, countless eating binges from our 2ww’s, and a really shitty job that required constant travel has really taken it’s toll on me. Believe me when I say, husbands get pregnant too. What else is there to do between our weekly ultrasounds? Ice cream, cheese burgers (with bacon!), Doritos’s, candy, booze, all adds the pounds on. I’ve tried to rally myself and get the motivation to loose weight again, but find myself lacking. In 2007, taking that weight off was simultaneously the hardest and easiest thing I’ve ever done. Today, all I can focus on is the hard part. I miss the way I felt. I miss the way food tasted. I miss walking into a room of new people and not feeling like “the fat computer guy.” It’s embarrassing.

Today, I’m taking the first step into getting back on track. Here’s the plan;

  1. Portion Control. Start reducing the amount of calories I’m consuming. Wean myself off of food that is horrible for me by eating less of it. Once I’m used to that, eat chicken, turkey and other lean food WITH vegetables.
  2. Wii-Fit. 3 days a week. I purchased it, convincing myself I’d use it. Time to do it. Eventually, start running again.
  3. Weigh myself weekly. Time to face the music and see the damage done.
  4. Monthly blog post on progress on the 15th of every month.

I don’t want to be a overweight, lazy fat dad and it’s time to make a change. Who’s with me?