Day 132 The Wal-Mart Social Scene and My Incredibly Shrinking Face

Day 132

The Wal-Mart Social Scene and My Incredibly Shrinking Face

I never thought that a trip to Wal-Mart would be something I actually enjoyed. At over 500 pounds, it was a chore indeed, and I only made the trip inside if I absolutely didn't have a choice. Only once when I had excruciating sciatic nerve pain did I use the motorized cart. Amber went along to help daddy out on that trip and take a few really embarrassing “way before” pictures. I'll post one below. Now, it's a completely different attitude and feeling when I go to Wal-Mart. I don't look for the closest parking, I walk strong and straight into the store. I don't waddle anymore. 100 pounds less makes a world of difference. This evening I actually enjoyed running into people I know. First was Whitney, she reads this blog everyday, but we never see each other anymore since she changed jobs. I met up with her in front of the potatoes. It was funny because we both had the same reaction to each others appearance. She was amazed at what a difference she could see in me and I was amazed at the transformation she's accomplished. Whit has lost 40 pounds, and let me tell you, on her, that's like me losing 150. It was a dramatic difference since I last saw her. She looked fabulous and she said the same about me. Her husband has also lost 40 pounds! They've really got it together! Then I ran into a former business associate of mine, she also noticed the big change in me. She congratulated me and gave me a very nice “keep up the good work.” Finally, in the frozen foods section a young woman said... “are you Sean Anderson?” “yes, yes I am”... It was Dr. Amy Cox from the Ranch Wellness Center. I've been writing and producing radio commercials for her and her husband, Dr. Jeremy Cox, for a long time. Dr. Amy is an authority on wellness in all it's forms. She does free weekly health seminars over a variety of topics, including losing weight and getting in shape. So I was excited to tell her about my success so far, and to give her the web address for this blog. She was very complimentary on some of the philosophies I shared with her and the simple “eat less-exercise more” approach I've taken. And that felt great coming from a doctor, you know what I mean? At this point I was doing more visiting than shopping, but I was enjoying myself. I went into the store with a pasta-salad-garlic bread dinner in mind, but I quickly changed the plans in the middle of the store. Although I'm prepared to count the calories in pasta and I know exactly what a portion means, I'm still a little apprehensive and suspicious of pasta. I guess it's because of the giant portions I use to eat and the extremely loaded way I'd prepare the stuff. I use to load it up with high fat ground beef, then sometimes, I'd prepare it with loads of cheese baked on top. Hey, wait a minute, that sounds like my lasagna...But really it's the portions I'd consume that were really scary. I'd load a plate with spaghetti (at least four normal portions), then I'd go back for more right after. Then I'd heat up leftovers for a late night snack. And those 150 calorie pieces of garlic toast? If I didn't have at least two of them, something was wrong. So my defenses are way up when it comes to pasta dishes. I noticed a great deal on some very lean and small center cut pork chops. And immediately the dinner plans changed. At only 130 calories per 4 ounce portion, I felt much better about the pork over the pasta. I prepared a very nice 400 calorie dinner: Baked pork chops with a light honey glaze, scalloped potatoes, corn on the cob and salad. It was a a good looking plate and a very satisfying meal. I even have enough calories left over for a nice late night snack. Oh wow, that picture below is horrible.

Courtney and I had a wonderful workout today at the YMCA. It was kind of rushed because we were short on time, but I upped my speed to 3.6 and boy, just .2 miles per hour faster and I was sweatin' and a breathin' and really working it! I may try to keep that pace for a while. I noticed a very different group of people there early afternoon on a Saturday. We normally see a lot of familiar faces when we go, but today was a completely different set of faces. Speaking of faces, I had the YMCA front desk person show me my headshot ID picture they made when we first started going...wow what a fat face! Huge difference now!

I just had a call from my father in law. He was asking me if I had some kind of a calorie book. I asked him if he's wanting to lose weight and he said yes. He needed to know the calories in things like eggs and apples. I was very surprised about this, because he's never really been concerned with counting calories or losing weight. He's driven a truck his entire life and consumed some of the biggest, greasiest, truck stop fare you can imagine. But now he realizes that something must change. He told me that his heart rate is over 100 at rest, and at 150 pounds overweight, it's hard for him to breathe laying down, even with a CPAP machine. I'm taking him a calorie count book tomorrow. I'm so proud of him for confronting this challenge too! It could add years to his life.

I have a nice evening planned with my wife. Courtney's staying at a friends and Amber's away at college, so we have the whole house with just the two of us! Take care and until next time, good night and...

Good Choices,
Sean


Me with severe sciatica pain-September 2006 505 to 510 pounds