Day 691, 692, and 693 Three Days Away, Weighing Issues, and More "Lost" Before Pictures

Day 691, 692, and 693

Three Days Away, Weighing Issues, and More "Lost" Before Pictures

Wow---this is getting out of hand! Ask Kenz how crazy I get when I keep myself from writing. It drives me nuts!! It's like withdrawals. But it's good for me every now and then to relax and normalize a little. Besides, this kind of schedule is getting me ready for book writing time--when it will be completely impossible to post everyday. So, I'm good, it's OK---I'm OK, you OK? Good...we're all OK.

I just want to say thank you for a moment to all of the wonderful people who take the time to email me after discovering this blog and my approach to weight loss. Lately, it's everyday...and it makes me beam with pride. I must share at least one...

Penny writes:

I just wanted to Thank You for your blog, It was featured on AOL and I read it and thought my husband could do this!! You made it sound easy..THE BANK idea is what caught my eye, once your out of calories thats it, so I told my husband we will do this together and we went shopping and looked for things we already liked to eat but for the lowest calories possible, Its working my husband is doing his own food journal and counting calories!!!! This is a guy that would never have done such a thing a couple of weeks ago. Its almost like a game, what can we eat today and still lose weight. He has lost 15 lbs in two weeks and I have lost 6 and my mother in law has joined and has lost 4 in a week, Thank you for changing our lives.. My husband has sleep apnea and it scared me, he was 320 and now 305.. he's on his way. Thanks again Penny and David

And today she added:

I've lost another two pounds!! It was funny my mom-in-law asked me where did you find this diet?She was utterly amazed. I think it is going to be our "life change" rather than a diet. Thanks for the encouraging words. Did you find us on F.B.?Ya know I don't think I have ever been excited to get on the scale every morning:) Thanks again, Penny

Is it really any wonder why I desire to make weight loss speaking and writing my career? It gives me the greatest feeling of fulfillment and accomplishment, sharing my story and communicating effectively--and then I read an email like that? I'm so happy. But let me say again---and I do every time someone says thank you "for changing our/my life." When it comes right down to it, it's not me that's changing your life---it's you. It's all you. I can show you what I've done and how I've traveled this transformation road, but ultimately---every one's road is a little different. And you can read every single day along my journey and it not do a single thing for you---or you can read and hit epiphanies along the way that simplify the process in your mind---it might unlock something within you. But it's in you. I can light your fuse if you let me--but whether or not you fly high like a rocket is totally up to you and your good choices. You have the power to change your life...and inspire others to do the same! I highly recommend it!

I spent the weekend with Kenz at her dad's place. Saturday afternoon we kicked around Stillwater. We had lunch at The Hideaway. I LOVE the Hideaway--I mean, really---I've written about this place before--many times actually. It feels so good to walk in that place and navigate the food with responsible portions and good choices. Kenz and I shared a personal mini-pizza and an order of mushrooms. They are simply the best mushrooms in the entire world--but these were smaller than the 30 calorie per mushroom variety they once featured. Hmmmm...I had to adjust my approach a little. No problem at all.

The great thing about enjoying a place like this and doing it like a normal person: You don't leave feeling sick. Visiting a restaurant like this, well---it always meant I would leave feeling incredibly uncomfortable. I wouldn't stop eating until I was stuffed. But that was then...now, it feels amazing to shift the focus away from the food (And by the way, that doesn't mean I LOVE it less, it just means I don't obsess over it anymore.) and put it on the people and atmosphere. The food is good, it incredible---and it's there, and I enjoy, but it's not the main focus anymore, and I leave feeling satisfied completely---feeling incredible because I'm in control. I just enjoyed Hideaway again---and I'm still losing weight. Wow--it's up to us, completely. We decide how it goes, we choose...we're responsible for our good choices, anywhere...even at The Hideaway.

We left Hideaway and walked over to Marble Slab Creamery. We were going in to see if Kenz's old friend was working the counter. We walked inside and immediately I was trying to figure out how I could justify some ice cream after a big nice lunch. I leaned over to Kenz and asked "So, you think we could just ask for a sample spoon, then not order anything?" It would be a taste---what? Maybe 25 calories tops...come on!!! We decided against that idea. After discovering that her friend wasn't working, we turned around and walked out---without so much as a tiny sample spoon of the best premium ice cream on the entire planet. We were in control.

We settled at Panera for water, coffee, and wi-fi. It wasn't long before we were offered a free sample---and since we were conserving calories/points for the cookout later--and because we just enjoyed Hideaway---we declined. It must have been the first time someone ever declined--judging from the look on the lady's face, she was thinking: Really? But it's a homemade pastry!! Or whatever it was---look at the picture below---that, whatever that is---we said no.

Saturday night we enjoyed a cookout. The sirloin is typically the best steak calorie value going---but this particular cut was a little "better," meaning---a few more calories per four ounce serving. The grillmaster plopped a giant steak on my plate--and I quickly made my way to the table, reaching for a knife and Kenz's digital food scale---we measured. The entire thing was slightly more than eight ounces. OK---no problem, I cut it in half for a decent sized 200 calorie portion. I enjoyed a half a small baked potato too---and dinner was served! I also enjoyed a few chips and some watermelon--and a very small slice of the best homemade strawberry cake in the entire world. Claudia is a family friend of Kenz and her dad---and she's an expert baker. The cake had real strawberries. Yeah--fresh fruit...so, it was healthy. ;) Still---a very small piece was enjoyed immensely.

Sunday we attended church service, sitting in the front of the congregation as Kenz'z dad delivered a wonderful sermon. Once again, Kenz delighted everyone in attendance with her amazing singing talents--even doing a number with her dad alongside on the guitar. It was awesome really.

After church we enjoyed lunch with Tom and Linda--Kenz's relatives from Texas. Tom is a Texas Lawman---a constable. Those two are just good people, pure and simple---and I'm not just saying that because Tom is an excellent marksman. We enjoyed lunch at Charlies Chicken in Stillwater---While we discussed how it was a blog paragraph on this blog, talking about this very restaurant that caught Kenz's attention exactly six months ago to the day.

Kenz wanted to fire a gun. Hey--she's back home in Oklahoma---might as well, right? And it just so happens--Tom had a .45 ready to go. Hmmm...OK...Let's do it! Thanks to Tom for the tips and pointers, plus the gun and ammo...and thank you to Kenz for doctoring my bloody thumb after a minor accident with the gun. The thingy that moves when you fire, the block, the chamber---the whatever---it moves real fast like---and it jumped back and bit me seven times before I even realized I was bleeding. I took it like a man. Until Kenz started doctoring my wound. That's when I acted like a baby.

Monday was good too. Amber goes back to school on Thursday, so we decided to have a movie night. I prepared a nice spaghetti dinner for everyone before we all headed to the theater. We even enjoyed some movie snacks---including the new pretzel M&M's! At 150 calories per serving--it's not a bad little candy calorie value!! Amber, Courtney, KL, Bradley, Kenz, and I enjoyed the feature and the time together. It was very nice!

Kenz and I did the 30 day Shred DVD the other night with Jillian Michaels. That'll get ya good, I mean---howdy! Well...thank you Jillian! It was my first Jillian workout experience---and I could totally do that again. It was fun---and I must brag on Kenz---she absolutely rocked that DVD---made me look like a slacker!!! I'm totally not kidding.

I heard from a friend of mine who's becoming frustrated with the scale. She weighs everyday. My advice? Stop weighing everyday. I know I've written about this before---I found it in the archives from August 14th, 2009:

The subject of weighing schedules has really come up a bunch lately. Some weigh every week, most do actually. Some (like me) weigh every two weeks. And some weigh everyday. Some even weigh several times a day. There's no right or wrong here in my opinion. But, allow me to say this: If you like to “scale binge,” (a term coined a while back by a blogger friend---I can't remember which one this second---but it was brilliant) and it does anything other than motivate you in a positive way, then stop doing it. Weigh-in time should be a rewarding experience, especially when you know you're doing everything you can do to get the results you deserve. If it's frustrating you, then maybe you're doing it too often. I talked to my mom Thursday evening and she was frustrated. She had weighed three days in a row and had absolutely zero change. She stayed the same all three days despite her perfect calorie balance and exercise schedule. I explained to her how her weight can fluctuate and the possibility of added water weight causing this minor plateau. She was so frustrated, very discouraged. I think I've convinced her to continue doing what she's doing and to stay off the scale for a solid two weeks. I think she'll be thrilled with what she discovers.

Early on this road, the less you do to complicate or frustrate things the better. You really have to look at yourself honestly and decide what kind of weigher you are. If a small number or no loss or even a small gain sends you into depression, then stop it! If it quickly motivates you no matter the result, then by all means, weigh away! The results will come, why are you in such a hurry? The scale isn't going anywhere---it'll be there when your weigh day comes around. I realize now that many times in the past I had complicated things and frustrated myself to the point of failure. It's a self-sabotage issue. Keep the focus on your good choices with food and exercise. Stay zeroed in on your motivating thoughts. Keep that steel curtain zone up and tight, and the weight loss will simply and dramatically happen. All of a sudden you'll love the scale and the number it shows you.

I remember “sneaking a peak” at the scale in Stillwater early on this journey. A week had passed since I'd last stepped on, and I was on fire! Everything was spot on, every minute of every day. So with a week before my official weigh-in I took a look and found that I was exactly the same. It killed me. What? Are you serious?? What am I doing wrong? I wasn't doing anything wrong---I was doing everything right, but for whatever reason—my hard work and consistency just wasn't showing. I was scared and frustrated. This “scale rejection” made the next week a little harder than it needed to be because of my frustration. Then when I had the official weigh in a week later, it showed a 10 pound loss. I was relieved and completely thrilled. Like I said---if you can honestly handle “scale rejection,” then weigh five times a day if you wish. But if you're like me, save yourself the needless frustration by spreading out those weigh days. If not, you just might be sabotaging yourself by complicating the process. If you're doing what you know is right and good, then the results will come to you, you don't need to chase them.

My friend Wendy, aka New Me, coined the term "Scale Binging." Speaking of weighing---not one person called me on the missed weigh day last week. I totally missed my weigh day. First time EVER. Wow---and really, it was Friday and I was so busy---I just didn't find the time to get into the doctors office for the check-up on the scale. After spending the weekend away---I've decided not to stress. I can skip a weigh day. No problem. I will admit, I don't feel as thin as I did two and a half weeks ago---I mean, I think I've lost another pound or two maybe, but not three or four. Because seriously---three or four is something I can totally see and feel these days. I love being so close to goal!!! Get here my friend, keep on coming---because it's an incredible feeling, it really is the most amazing feeling of freedom.

My friend and co-worker Gayle Williams discovered some "Lost" before pictures on her computer. I can't wait for you to see them!!! Wow---they just blew me away---Yep---that was me. WAS me....oh my dear...not anymore, not anymore---ever. Thank you Gayle!

And thank you for reading. Goodnight and...

Good Choices,
Sean


We shared a mini-pizza...it was still plenty, trust me--it was amazing! And plenty...


I love mushrooms...especially when you batter and fry them. They used to be bigger---about 30 calories each---not anymore---these were smaller---but still about 10 to 15 calories a pop, easy.


A walk in the park. Kenz's cousin Linda is a professional photographer. Thank you Linda! This was at Theta Pond on the campus of Oklahoma State University.


We rejected these offered samples at Panera Bread!


Looks good huh? Thanks to Tom for grilling them and to Kenz for providing an accurate 200 calories worth with her digital food scale.


Kenz with a .45---watch out--She's armed and dangerous!! ;)


"Yeah---so I stand like this and hold it like what? Wait a second, my thumb is bleeding..."


A few years ago--we did this fundraiser called "Sean's Second Job for Toys." My second job? Delivering pizzas for Dominos. It was gruelling work---but we raised a bunch of money---and the local owner matched the proceeds...and then we bought toys for children at the domestic violence shelter. It was a wonderful experience!! This before shot is absolutely huge to me---It may be my new favorite "before." Thank you Gayle for finding these!!


I was bigger than Santa. With the director of the domestic violence shelter...wow---that's me at my biggest, I'm pretty sure.


Recent---in the Tuxedo from Sprays Jewelry and Gifts in Ponca City, OK--USA