Another big week!

The official weigh-in was moved to Wednesday this week and next for the Holidays. I lost 7 pounds this week to bring the 6 week total to 59 and my weight down to 296. I am really excited. I see the light at the end of the tunnel. I will continue to do the shake only thing through Feb 5, then I will incorporate fruits and vegetables into the program. I hope to get real close to 250 by then. At the current rate, my goal of 220 may be attainable before I know it!! Also my running is going well. I ran 4.5 miles yesterday and felt really good. I will start the training plan for the Nashville 1/2 marathon the first week of Feb. Thanks for all your support! I will keep you updated.

UNDER 300 POUNDS!!!!

Today is the day, I stepped on the scales and it read 299.6. I am under 300 pounds for the first time in a long long long time. It has to be almost 7 years since I was under 300 pounds. The scale I am using here at the house is the same one that I tiped at 380 last year, so I have lost over 80 pounds in the last year. I am sure that when I have the official weigh in at St. Bernards on Wednesday I will have another good loss. It may not be as big as the last couple of weeks, but it will bring the total on this program up to over 55 pounds in the last 6 weeks. My next big goal is 250, I hope to be in the 250s by Feb 5th. This is a pretty big goal, but the way things are going I am going to dream big.

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!

Down 9.7 POUNDS today

That brings the 5 week total to over 50 pounds!!! I am scared to death as to what this week will bring. Christmas, the birth of our second daughter, and all just two pounds from the ever elusive 290's. I have run over three miles three times over the last week and have had a couple of great swim workouts. I hope that I will not lose much momentum this week. I will keep you up to date. Thanks for the support.

Gliding and Grinding

I run, kind of, it's pretty slow but it burns calories and helps feed that competitive side I have. Monday I ran 2.5 miles in 29 minutes and 59 seconds. I felt like I was flying, it was smooth, my breathing was great and I felt good after the run. I think that was the first time ,at least in a while that I had run that loop under 30 minutes. Today over lunch I went to run the same loop, and within the first hundred yards I was feeling a little fatigue. I thought to myself, ok, time doesn't matter let's grind this loop out and go get back to work. I did not even look at my watch to check my time at any point during the run because I knew it was going to be bad. So the end came and I looked down and it was 29:42. How did that happen? Monday I was gliding and today I was grinding, but it was faster? I think there is a moral to this story, but I am too busy to figure it out.

First 4 weeks down 8 to go

After four weeks on this diet I am down a total of 42.2 pounds!!! Yeah. I lost 7.7 this week and that get me just 13 pounds shy of 299. I think I can be under 300 by Christmas. Also I ran the inside loop at Craighead (junst under 2.5 miles) in 29 minutes today, that is my fastest ever. I will keep you updated, but these next couple of weeks are crucial because it will be easy to go into cruise control, but I will need to stay strong in order to reach my goals.

Down 9.9 pounds and did the 5K

It has been a great week. I ran the 5K in Memphis on Saturday and weighed in last night and lost almost 10 pounds. This brings the 3 week total up to 34. The most they have ever had anyone do in 4 weeks is 31, so I am already the "biggest loser" I am shooting for 40 in 4 weeks. All is going great, I am feeling good, and all is going well.

25 Pounds in 2 Weeks

Not bad, I have to say. It is the hardest way to lose weight, but it is also very effective. The people at the hospital made fun of me for not being real happy with a 6.4 pound loss in a week, but it was Thanksgiving and I gave up a lot!! I was really expecting at lest 10, but they say this week should be a big one. Something about my body getting used to the physical activity and less calories.

Greg and I run the big 5K in Memphis this Saturday, I am pumped about that. I will be running at less weight than I ran last year, but just by around 10 pounds. I wonder if that will help my time??

Long Hard Week

It is Friday and I made it through Thanksgiving, it was tough but I stayed on the program, and I have run over two miles on two seperate occasions over the last week. I am really getting back into seeing the weight go down and my mileage go up. I have a had a much tougher day today, trying not to cheat then I did yesterday, but if I can do well till Christmas, I might eat a little real food. I can't wait to report on how much I lose Monday.

I lost a lot

Actually the most anyone has ever lost in one week in this new program, 18 pounds!!! I ran a little and drank my shakes and went to the doctor and all is going well. I ran well this week as I continue getting ready for the 5K on Dec 2. But today has been a rough day, I have really wanted to eat lots of things I should not. My goal is over 35 in 4 weeks, lets just keep it at that for now. One day at a time, and this Thursday (Thanksgiving) is a big big day.

On The Road Again

It seems like a different lifetime that I was down to 309 pounds and staring the 200s in the face for the first time in a long long time. Because I started this week at 355(that's pounds), it hurts my fingers just to type the numbers. The reason I weighed was that I was weighing in at the local hospital because I have just enrolled in their medically supervised weight loss program. I know you are thinking... You are really fat, but you are also asking yourself "Is Brad crazy, why is he getting serious about a diet the week before Thanksgiving? Well friends, let me tell you. I am an addict and if I don't get this under control then I will be in serious trouble come the first of year. I can't allow the gain to continue, and the doctor told be I have some syndrome that is a precursor to diabetes. With all that said, now seems to be as good as time as ever. This diet is very similar to the one Arkansas Govenor Huckabee used to lose all his weight. I will be limited to 500 calories a day, which I will get with 5 shakes a day. The idea is to lose weight really fast and then protect my weight loss. My good friend Ken here at work says I will not make it all 13 weeks, my aunt Sandra says I can't do. I want to do this for me, but for my short term competitive nature I want to do it to prove them wrong, I also want to lose more weight in the first 3 weeks of the program than anyone has so far, that would be 31 pounds. My weigh in is Monday, I will update you on Tuesday.

Here I AM

Not much time, but here is the deal. I am up to 337, now that is a gain of a little over 20 pounds. The good news is I ran yesterday for the first time in a while and I has signed up for a bike ride on the 21st and going to do the same 5K I did last year in December. I am hoping I can get back on track and start losing. I will let you know if I did not Friday.

I am getting Fatter

After getting rid of 80 pounds, I have really sucked it up for about month now. I have not weighed in because I am too big of a wus to see how much I have gained. This is stupid, so I think I will weigh Friday and just get it over with. I have got to get it back in gear. I want to run the Memphis Marathon, but the training is not starting out so well. I have been traveling a ton and never eat good on the road. I am leading the University Life Ministry (the Southwest Ministry to ASU) and I am working my regular job and being a daddy and husband and all the other normal stuff. It just gets so freakin busy. But I have nothing that other people don't have to work around. If some have done a marathon without a leg I should be able to handle a few schedule conflicts.

I will let you know more as I progress, but just wanted to update you and let you know I am still alive and trying.

Where Have I Been

HELLO Again!! I have been very separates in my post lately and I am so sorry about that. I know I have many adoring fans waiting to hear from me( Hi DAD) Anyway, I have fallen off the wagon. All the travel to Chattanooga and the awful realization that I will not be able to do the triathlon I have been training for because of a scheduling conflict has caused me to lose focus. I have not worked out in over a week and have eaten like I am having my last meal for at least 2 weeks. But today I have had a really good day and feel that I am getting back on track. I will not weigh this week, but anticipate the next official weigh in to be a week from Friday. I just can't make myself look at the way I have gone backwards, if I don't see the number real high, maybe I won't be as depressed. But here is the deal, I am going to train for the 1/2 marathon here in conspire that will be in October and then hit it real hard and do the St. Jude Marathon in December in Memphis (my first marathon) This will be hard and take some serious dedication that I have not shown since the Nashville 1/2, but I think I need a big challenge to rise to. I will try and post the plan I am going to use and the link to the race.

Good Day

I biked 15 this morning with my friends Jason and Kevin, we did some major hills. I have not eaten well since the tri and have proably gained a few pounds, but my friend Rob has inspired me today with his comment and I am pumped up to train for the Jonesboro 1/2 marathon coming in Oct. Also I am afraid I will not be able to do the tri on Aug 20 becasue I am do the campus ministry at ASU and that is the first weekend of school and I probably need to be here. I will find another soon before or after that one.

Thanks again for the comment Rob, it sounds like you are doing well. I hope to email you soon and here more about your journey.

Biked 17 ran 3

My participation in my first triathlon went well. My friend Jason did a great job in the swim and I jumped on the bike and had a pretty good ride. I got passed by a few people, but was still in the middle of the pack when I started the run. That my friend is when it went down hill, well I wish it went it downhill, it seemed to go up up and up. My legs were like big piles of rocks for the first mile and 1/2 and that is not good on a 3 mile run. I got passed by a lot of people. But in the end we accomplished our goal 1. FINISH and 2. Finish in under 2 hours. 3. Don't come in last! We accomplished all 3 goals and now I am ready to get more serious about Aug 20, when I will do all 3 by myslef.

Look for a weight update on Friday!

Back, Kind of

Well the weight is not going as well and neither is the training, but either way I compete in my first ever triathlon tomorrow!! I have not gained too much weight, but I am going in the wrong direction. I will do the 17 mile bike and the 3.1 mile run tomorrow for the Jonesboro Triathlon. I am pumped up about it, my good friend Jason will be doing the swim. I hope to use this event to propel me on to bigger and, or should I say smaller things. I am hoping to really buckle down on the ole eating plan for my next event which is looking like Aug 20, (a sprint tri) and then I hope to take part in the Jonesboro 1/2 marathon in April.

I will let you know how it goes Monday.

Back Down

I am reporting today with mixed emoitions that I am back down to 309, which is what I was before vacation. Just a few pounds from the ever elusive 299. I usually take a free day which turns into free weekend, so until I real the new numbers I will only have free meal, and something chocolate. Today I am going to eat Pizza and I alredy had my sweet brownie frappacino from SFBC.

I rode 17 this morning and will ride 20 in the morning. I am really enjoying riding and trying to build up for the tri on June 24. More updates later.

The BIG THREE

Well my eating has gone real well this week, after a surprise trip to Chattanooga last weekend where I got off the eating plan for the whole weekend we are back and working hard. I have riden my bike a couple times this week for over 20 miles and I have run a couple of times this week for 3 miles at a time, and I went swimming twice this week, once with my neighbor Jason who really helped me understand my form better. I have been amazed at how friendly and helpful people are, and how much they want to help. It is relly awsome. Kim and I went bike riding with the Ridge Rider club on Monday night and we did not know one of them, but they were all as helpful as could be and the leader, Jim, rode beside me for a while talking about swimming and offering to come help me out with my technique. I know I am not near the conditioned athlete that many in the club are or others that have actually done triathlons, but they make one who is just trying to lose a little weight in get in shape like one who belongs.

My plan for the Conway CATS tri is off, I have to leave for Portland on that day, so it looks like my only two chances to do a triathlon this summer will be the bike and run part of the one Jason and I are doing on the 24th of this month, the one in Forest City on the 15th of next month, or the Degray Lake on Aug 20th. I am very confident I could do the bike and run part today, it's that swim I am a little worried about.

WEIGHT UPDATE COMING TOMORROW!!

I am still here

I have been on vacation, but don't worry I am still working at losing weight and getting in better shape. I will admit that I ate like a salve just released from indentured while in Florida. I have key lime pie, I had steak, I had hamburgers and fries, I had shrimp by the pound, and that was just the first day. Kim and I took our bikes and we rode a couple of days and ran another day, so I tried to stay in the habit of working out, but it is tough with a 2 year old on vacation to find time to do stuff alone. But all it all it went well and now I am back and hitting it hard again. As is my tradition when I have been gone I don't weigh the week I get back as not to be depressed, but I did sneak a peak today and things could be worse, so 299 is still in the near future.

Here are a couple of other things in the near future. Coming up on June 24 I will be doing the 17 mile bike and 3 mile run portion of the Jonesboro Triathlon. My friend and neighbor Jason will be doing the swim portion and together we will try not to come in dead last. There is pride on the line between another of his co-workers and a freind,they are both real skinny, I think Jason and I are getting 5 seconds a pound. I think I have decided not to do the tri in Forest City that I was going to do for my first official triathlon and do my first with Jason in Septmeber in Conway. I have not made up my mind for sure not to do Forest City, but I do want to do Conway with Jason, and we could train together for it and all that good stuff.

This morning Jason and I biked the 17 mile course for the tri here in town and it is HILLY, I think they are trying to kill somebody, I just hope it's not me.

Triathlon Training Going Well

I have lost all the weight I gained over the D.C. trip and Nashville and now under 310 again, going in the right direction to 299. I have swam 200 yards and biked 13 and run a few miles over the last week and really looking forward to the July 15 Mighty Mite triathlon. I really want to hit the workouts hard this week and do real well eating, becasue we will be on vacation next week with Kim's family in Florida. But this moring I am struggling with my gout arthritis more than I have in a long long time. It is really hurting and is very uncomfortable to just walk much less run. I am going to the doctor this moring and see about getting a shot or something that will make it better. I have not had a problem with gout since I started working out and running until a week before the 1/2 marathon. I will let you know how it goes.