Since going on the cruise (still gotta blog bout that one), I've been on a mission to lose weight. I gained 6-7lbs on the cruise, up to the dreaded 200lbs mark. The last time I hit 200lbs was Spring 2007. I decided then to kick it into high gear and shed some pounds. I started biking into work, at least 3 days/week. I dropped 15 lbs that summmer.
Then came the Monument Ave 10k. I knew if signed up and paid, I'd have to do it. And if I did it, I'd do it right and train. And so I did, but I didn't lose a single pound--gained some muscle I suppose. Fast forward a few weeks and the cruise fattened me back up to 200lbs. The week following the cruise I quickly dropped the 6-7lbs gained, and for the next couple weeks I lost even more. I'm going to ride this until I plateau, hopefully at a cool 175-180lbs. I guess my body's modivated.
Its all about diet and exercise. I've always done the exercise part of it, but haven't ever been able to hold a steady diet. I love pancakes, hot dogs, eggs, pizza, mexican food, and [insert awesome but unhealthy food] too much to have ever dieted properly. And diet food always has sub-par taste. And since I never dieted, I never lost the weight I wanted to.
My original post-cruise plan was to continue riding my bicycle to work but change lunch. I'd have a salad for lunch for two weeks so I could lose the cruise-fat. That idea evolved into also eating a proper breakfast, too. I'd eat kashi ceral, 2% milk, and half of a banana, sliced. Soon I'll sub in skim milk. Yuck, but I'll just have to deal. My two week salad consisted primarily of lettuce, tomatoes, carrots, and lots of tuna. Occasionally, I'd thrown in half a hard boiled egg. I brought my own salad dressing in, fat-free and lo-cal. And I since I pay for salad by weight, its cheaper to weigh my salad with no dressing. Yay!
Next, I decided, hey, why just cycle in 3 days/week, why not 5!? And so I did. I reduced my parking to once/week, saving $80/month. I will get reimbursed for all the weeks which I didn't park at all. And any week I have to park twice, I'll just have to pay an extra $5. Good deal, I say! This idea was driven by the rising costs of fuel, the increased rate for parking, and my desire to be healthy. My gameplan was simple: bike everyday, weather permitting. Ride the bus on rainy days. However, I still drive if I need to leave straight from work to go someplace. Soon, this situation should be replaced (weather permitting) to my motorcycle which parks for free and can leave in a hurry. Then I truly won't have to park, ever.
Here's the recap of June's commute thus far:
Bike: 13 days
Bus: 1
Drive: 1
Motorcycle: not inspected/functional yet
Why only cycle for commuting? Why not for longer travels? Sat. June 7th I cycled to my brother's house in C-field on that day that was 1,000,000 degrees. I did it at 8am, so it was only about 800,000 degrees. It took me 1 full hour to go 13.7 miles. Sun. June 15, I cycled to my brother's (different bro) baseball game @ Henrico High. This was 6.5 mi each way, total of 13 miles. I really enjoy the long trips and I hope to do more soon!
Hey, why only diet at work? and Why only for two weeks? I started really watching my portions and food items for dinner, too. I bought some tuna steaks for dinner and I started really planning my meals. Also, while shopping I bought smart snacks, like pretzel twists over potato chips, 100 calorie snack, etc. And lots and lots of canned tuna. During this fat-shedding period, I've eaten lots of tuna and tuna for lunch on my salad, tuna for dinner in steak or sandwich form. Its great; low in calories, high in protein, low in fat (if you get it in water) and tastes good. And besides its fish. Ever wonder why the Japanese have the highest life expectancy? Look at their food staple--fish. Yay for fish. People say, "oh but the amounts of mercury you're ingesting." I still believe the health benefits out-weigh the risks of mercury, but I still heed the warning and get the chunk light tuna. This is usually made from skipjack, a smaller Tuna. That said, I prefer the solid white tuna, which in the US can only be white albacore-- a larger fish. The larger the fish, the more fish it eats, the more mercury it can potentially have.
Smaller, more frequent means, you say? I always snack between lunch and dinner. This supposedly keeps the metabolism kicking, so I usually have a banana 'round 2 PM. Speaking of which, I need to pause and eat right now--its 2:30 PM. K, done now, mushy but good!
So all that equates to 13.5lbs lost, down from 200 to 186.5! And I really don't plan on stopping there. I hope to shed another 10, but am willing to settle for 6. Soon my body will put a stop to it, I think.
Stay tuna, I mean tuned.
Labels: bike, weight
