This is week five of my project to get back to a healthier lifestyle. If you recall from a couple of weeks ago, my goals at this point were:
Plan:
- No drinks other than water
- No sweets other than fruit (no dried fruit either)
- No beef
- No bread
- Three runs per week
- Three weights workouts per week
And The Goals Were:
- 1 hour run at 5.5mph
- 1 set of bench press at 255
- weight 225lbs (this has changed)
How am I doing?
The Good
I’ve stuck pretty closely to my plan. Yes, I had a couple of diet cokes and there was one evening where I ate a hamburger. However, those were the exception. On most days, I held true to my plan (see obstacles below) and I’m very happy with where I am. I’m eating healthier and I feel better.
In terms of exercise, I’m finally finding the right balance between life, work and the gym. I’ve shifted my schedule so instead of trying to go in the middle of the work day, I now wake up a bit earlier (6am) and go workout. Sometimes I’ll go straight to work from there (after a shower of course) and sometimes I’ll come back home, hang out with Julie for a bit and then head to work. Either way, this schedule is working out rather well. I’m actually more productive at work because I don’t have the big gym break in the middle. Sure, I’m showing up to work at 8:30 instead of 7:30 but I’m also not disappearing from the office for 2 hours in the middle of the day.
I’ve also started a little support group with two of my friends who are trying to be healthier. We talk every week about what we’re trying, what’s working and what’s not. The main value for me is not the information but the motivation. I hear my friends talking about this and I am reminded of why I am doing it. I’m also a bit competitive (as are my friends) and none of us wants to appear incapable of something as simple as fitness and weight loss, so that helps too. I’ve started texting my friends my weight and workout performance on a daily basis. They do the same and it keeps all of us motivated to keep moving.
The Bad
Still having problems with eating unhealthy, specifically at the office. At home I’m doing incredibly well. Julie and I love home cooked meals and those are usually very healthy. I’m the cook for the most part and I focus on simple dishes like chicken breast with a few potatoes and a green salad on the side. We sit down to eat together, something I really like, and I end up eating slower and less than I would at a restaurant. Unfortunately, work is a whole other problem.
It’s been a really tough time at work for me. You can read about some of it on my other blog (Equally Happy) but the main issue is stress. There’s just so much to do and so little time to do it in that I feel overwhelmed on most days. I don’t even know where to start so instead of starting to work on a specific project, I avoid all work by going to the kitchen and snacking on junk food. This is the worst of all choices since it’s a death spiral of guilt and eating. I feel guilty over eating junk and over not working so what do I do? I eat more of course, or I reach for the diet coke.
This is one problem that I MUST address over the next two weeks, and not just for my health. I feel the stress hurting my home life and professional life. I am not as productive and efficient as I could be at work and I am not as loving and happy as I should be at home. Luckily for me, I have an extremely understanding and supportive wife who’s put up with it so far. I also have a very good boss who I am sure will work with me on a plan if I approach him with this problem next week. So that’s my goal for this upcoming week, address the work situation by talking to my boss and lowering the stress level.
All said and done though, I’m doing good. I’m at 228, 3lbs short of my goal but still losing weight. Weight workout and run workout are doing well and I’m also being far more active in other ways (I’m back to biking and walking everywhere).
Plan for the next two weeks is:
- No drinks other than water
- No sweets other than fruit (no dried fruit either)
- No beef
- No bread (this is new)
- Three runs per week
- Three weights workouts per week
Goals
- 1 hour run at 5.5mph
- 1 set of bench press at 265
- weight 225lbs
- Work out the office situation
Nope, nothing has really changed here with the addition of the work goal. I feel that resolving that one will allow me to stick to the others a lot better.
