**Warning**
**This post has absolutely nothing to do with lacrosse!**
Since this is my blog, I wanted to get a little personal for a moment. While this post is not lacrosse or sports related per se, it is health related and kind of important.Obesity is a major epidemic that affects thousands of Americans, including a considerable number of Iowans. I play sports to stay healthy but continue to struggle with my weight. I have had periods of good weight control at various points, but have more often than not struggled to stay within an ideal window.
I have weighed myself once a week continually since sometime in 2000 when I began focusing on losing weight to get married in 2001. When I got married I was not exactly slender nor was I at my perfect BMI. At that time, the World Health Organization said my BMI should be 23-25; I registered around 28.7, not that far off target. I look at their numbers as fuzzy because they do not consider muscle mass or bone size, but I definitely want to be close to that range.
Ten years down the road, I am at a BMI of 32.4. My doctor told me that I need to lost at least 20 pounds by my next physical in November. That will bring me back to a BMI of about 28.7. I am the first to admit that 2010 has not gotten off to a great start in the caloric sense. I have consumed more beer, chocolate, ice cream, and fat than I have in a long time. Today I realized that I have put on at least six pounds since January 1. Now it is time to get cracking.
Realistically joining a gym is not an option for me. I have neither the time nor free money to do so. I also have no motivation to do gym exercises; I know I should but I just get bored. I also hate to run for running's sake. So while I know there are things I can/should do, I am smart enough to know that I probably will not.
I am playing hockey through some point in May. It is only once a week, but it is definitely the most intense workout I do. So I know I have that going for me, and I plan to play again starting next fall. I also have lacrosse coaching. Mostly that involves a lot of pacing, which is better than sitting on my butt like I did most weekends during the winter. I could possibly do sprints at practice with the team; it's just a matter of getting myself to do it. Again, I hate running. Because of work and hockey, I only make two practices per week so I plan to force myself to run next week.
I also plan to resume Yoga. Yoga is great at strengthening core muscles and burns more calories than you realize. The lean muscle built doing Yoga also helps burn calories at rest. It also helps with balance and posture. Last time I dropped significant weight, Yoga was a key component.
In the immediate future, however, I plan to focus on my food intake. Before our wedding, my wife joined Weight Watchers. We both followed their program and both lost significant weight. Last time I dropped weight, WW played a role (along with Yoga and hockey). While I find the meetings useless, their system works great. As of today I am back on the path to healthy eating.
This morning I downloaded an app for my iPhone called iWatchr. Basically it runs the WW system and even has a points calculator. It allows me to track and store food logs in my iPhone, which is convenient since I almost always have it. You can also get it on the iTouch.
Since my wife got rid of our old WW stuff, I found a website to help me figure out my daily point allowance (33). There are several websites dedicated to the WW system and most are free. As this series continues I will try to link to each one I use.
As this is Day One of my quest to lose weight, I wanted to examine what I typically eat. Since Wednesday has been my weigh in day since at least 2007 when I began my current weight loss spreadsheet, I usually indulge in low fat whole grain Eggos (4.8) with Skippy Chunky Peanut Butter (4.7) and Sugar Free Syrup (1.4). Today I added 16 oz or organic orange juice (4.4). And just like that nearly half of my points were gone.
Lunch was leftover Buffalo Chicken Casserole. With a sauce made of buffalo sauce and ranch and blue cheese dressings, hashbrowns, and cheese, the rest of my points are more than gone. I still have dinner to figure out...
Today has been a real eye opener. But I still have to exist in the world I live in and that means eating the bad food I already have. Dealing with quick meals and going out - especially in light of the lax season. I know this won't be easy, but I lost more weight than this in the year before my wedding while working full time and going to school four nights per week. I know I can do it again.
