Commitment 101...
02/23/2008
Back in January I made a commitment to myself. I resolved to lose some weight via a long overdue diet and exercise program. The Nancy and I both committed to the same program. It began with removing at least an inch thick layer of dust off the treadmill and weight machine in our basement that we had totally ignored for over two years. The Nancy worked out the diet part; starvation, I think, is the key element of it. Well, not exactly starvation: We just have to eat certain foods and only consume them to the point where we are satisfied but not full, and we eat four times a day. The diet works on an eleven-day cycle and is pretty easy to follow; the hardest part for me is determining when I am satisfied rather than full. The exercise part is time consuming and not really strenuous, but is most definitely a pain in the ass.
As with any commitment, the success of it lay in direct proportion to ones willingness to fully participate. I am most happy to report The Nancy and I are still very much committed to our program even as we approach the sixtieth day of it. Thus far I am down twenty pounds and The Nancy has shed thirteen. We can both now easily do an hour on the treadmill, if we can stand it that long, and workouts on the weight machine are a little easier, as well. My clothes are loser, especially my pants. I am almost ready to put my “40”waist pants in storage and bring out the 38s. Whoopee!!! We both feel a hell of a lot better, and I don’t now see XXL clothing as an easy alternative to a weight loss program. I have found the diet program fairly easy to do, even though it has meant nearly giving up my beloved beer drinking (12-ounce curls) as my only means of exercise. The various foods I get on my diet, as a non-critter eater (but not a vegetarian), are satisfyingly good. My meat eating wife seems quite happy with hers, too.
My personal goal was to drop twenty-five pounds. This program has been so easy to follow and to stick with – perhaps that is because of our commitment to it, and because it is easy to follow I may go for total of thirty-five pounds. That will put me at a very svelte, sexy 205 lbs, and is a weight I have not seen in at least fifteen years. Bring on the Speedo, Baby!!!
I guess the next commitment I will need to make is the one to keep the weight off. It is the one that will require the greatest “willingness to participate.”
And that is all I have to say about that…except Happy 104th Birthday, Dad!!!