Phase Two of My Weight Loss Program

OK I think I’ve come up with the second phase of my weight loss program, I’ve been trying a few things and seeing what works for me and what I can live with and I think I’ve developed something that will facilitate the greatest success for me. As I’ve said in other articles I’ve done the exercise bit and I’ve done the fasting bit, but I never really put them together which is what I’m planning to do over the next 90 days. I don’t know how much tweaking I will have to do over the course of the process as far as added nutrition to facilitate recovery time, so a lot of things are in flux but if there is one thing I’m good at is improvisation.

I can’t really tell you why I like 90 day periods in my weight loss program, I think it’s long enough to see dramatic results and yet short enough to not seem like an eternity. And having a time frame pushes me to work that much harder. It’s a little mind game I play with myself. Anything less then 30 days is too short for me; I tend to get discouraged, especially if I go two week in a row without hitting my target weight. But going 30 days or 90 days it becomes more about the process and not the numbers, I do the best that I can do, and feel good about myself, for being self motivating. And I’ve learned that I succeed this way, in fact I usually surpass my target goal.

Goal

There are a few things that prevent me from doing what I want to do, and looking like someone that anyone would want to hire. Besides the enormity of my body, I have to be able to step up onto another level and rise from a seated position with a minimum amount of effort. These 2 basic activities have been denied me for the last 5 to 7 years. Even the smallest of platforms of 2 inches or more has been a challenge and sometimes an insurmountable obstacle for me. Unless I have a wall or railing or something to grasp onto it has been impossible for me to step up on a curb or a platform of even a small staircase. And so over the next 90 days it is my goal to build my muscles enough to do this. This is my primary goal; this is what is keeping me from being able to do my play, this is what is keeping me from looking like I’m hirable.

My secondary goal is to continue to lose weight, the more weight I can lose the easier it is for my muscles to lift my body and the more marketable I will appear to future employers. And so I’m setting a goal of 50lbs over the next 90 days. I think it’s a very doable objective and will put me around 350lbs, which sad to say has been my fighting weight. The size I’ve been for most of my life, it would be great to be below that but I know that I can do pretty much anything at that weight, at least I think I can survive. And as an added incentive my unemployment runs out in about 90 days and survival is the key to existence.

Process

So how am I going to do this?

I’m not doing much past my initial fast, I’m going to add a few raw vegetable throughout the day, some carrots, broccoli, radishes, and maybe some cucumbers, I will continue to take my protein, vitamin, and mineral supplements, as well as drink my juices and soy milk, and in the evening I have these packaged pasta dishes at about 250 calorie each giving me a little bit of carbs as well as some extra protein. I think I will still go out once a week and have a nice meal, and as long as I watch how much I consume, I think it adds an emotional element to my diet program that keeps me motivated. So I’m looking at between 700 and 900 calories a day. And exercise is an important ingredient in my process this time.

Right now I do laps around the church parking lot each day before mass, I usually work out between 15 to 20 minuets or until I feel like I’m just about to collapse, then I go participate in the service, which is a good morning workout which I’ve built up to over the course of the first part of my weight loss program. I also work out on my leg exerciser for maybe a half hour every day. Now I’m adding leg squats and I bought this step unit usually used for step aerobics and do that until I’m exhausted 2 or 3 times every other day. (I tried everyday but my body needs time to recover). Oh and I play around with some weights and a resistance band to exercise my upper body and arms. So that’s my process right now, I’m hoping the step unit will be the biggest benefit to me, right now I have it at 6 inches but it does raise to 10 inches, unfortunately my left leg isn’t strong enough to lift me even at 6 so I’m going to have to find a 2 inch something just to build up the left leg, and I still have to use my arms and the counter to step up with my right leg but I think repetition will be the best thing for me, and help me reach my goal.

 So officially everything starts after Easter, it might take a day or 2, depending oh how much I buy but I have this whole Polish Easter breakfast thing that I do, with sausage and boiled eggs, and horseradish, an rye bread, and most of the things you can’t buy single serving sizes, so after that food is gone is when I will begin. And I’m looking at taking holy week off from writing this blog, just so I can concentrate on my faith and not worry about what I’m going to write, which surprisingly takes up a lot of my time when I should be praying, but this has given me such a feeling of community and purpose in life that the trade offs have been far worth it.

If anyone has any comments or suggestions I would love to hear from you, and I thank you all for your companionship along my journeys

Stay healthy, stay safe, and as always

Peace

Jerry, (aka Fatman911)