My blog has moved!

You should be automatically redirected in 6 seconds. If not, visit
http://journeytosanctification.wordpress.com
and update your bookmarks.

Merry Workout Pledge (265andfalling edition)

Okay, so this community is freaking crazy. I'm not sure how I feel about it...actually, I love it! This was the second workout pledge that I've been a part of. Last one was 90 minutes. This one? 110.5. Yikes. I'm afraid of what's going to be next. I decided that almost 2 hours of running might be too much, so I chose the bike. And I rocked out 30.48 miles. Here are my before and after pictures.


Really, I can't tell a difference. Perhaps I didn't push myself hard enough? Oh well, these are fun.

Spilling Hope Update:
Sponsors: Josie ($0.25), Ricky ($0.50), Shelli ($0.25), Kim ($0.25), Ish ($0.25) Thanks Sponsors!!
Total Miles: 24
Total money raised: $136.00

Thursday:
110 minutes on exercise bike
50 situps
25 push ups
prayed
read the bible
read my devotion

Total:
36 minutes on elliptical
134 minutes on exercise bike
24 minutes on stair stepper
12 minutes on treadmill
ran 3 miles
350 situps
125 push ups
prayed
read the bible
read my devotion
2 dates with Anna

Weekly Calorie Count:
Sunday: xx
Monday: 2,150 Calories
Tuesday: 2,020 Calories
Wednesday: 2,225 Calories
Thursday: 2,785 Calories
Friday:
Saturday:

Daily Average: 2,295 Calories.

Still twEATing here.

Date Night

This week was Seattle Restaurant Week, where us common folk can enjoy 3-course meals at exclusive, expensive establishments. Tonight, Anna and I were treated to dinner by two of our good friends. We went to The Georgian and enjoyed a delicious dinner!


We started with an amuse bouche. It was a deconstructed tomato ravioli. It had tomato, goat cheese, and some other ingredients. And was delicious.


Then we ordered foie gras. I know it's not good for you, and the ethics are even worse, but none of us had ever had it, and we were told that the Fairmont had "the best". So we ordered it. And we each had 2 bites. It was pretty dang good, but I don't think I need to have it again. Nothing that spectacular. But tasty, for sure. Oh, and that square next to it? Yeah, I had to ask what it was...it's a beignet. Yummy.



For our "real meal", I ordered the Chilled Pea Consomme and Anna ordered the Caeser Salad. My consomme came out with just the solids in the bowl (and I was a little taken aback at first. Then the waiter brought out the pea liquid (heh) and poured it on. Oh wow, this was so light and refreshing! Anna's was a delicious classic Caesar salad--but the topper? Yeah, a tempura-fried egg yolk. Not sure how they do it, but it was delicious!



Then our entrees. I ordered the wild mushroom ravioli (delish), and Anna had the Seared Sea Scallops with Potato rounds and creamed leeks. Both dishes were excellent. My ravioli had such a great, earthy mushroom flavor; Anna's scallops were seared perfectly and the creamed leeks were succulent.



To wrap off the evening, our desserts consisted of my huckleberry (something, I can't remember the name) with a thimble of chocolate souffle and Anna's Chocolate "Explosion" which was a bar of chocolate ganache with pop rocks and a macaron, mango sorbet.



The food was excellent. But really, the best part was spending 2-1/2 hours with two great friends!


Oh and yeah, Kim, I was able to make it into the gym today--they added bigger doors, I guess!

Spilling Hope Update:
Sponsors: Josie ($0.25), Ricky ($0.50), Shelli ($0.25), Kim ($0.25), Ish ($0.25) Thanks Sponsors!!
Total Miles: 24
Total money raised: $136.00

Wednesday:
24 minutes on elliptical
12 minutes on exercise bike
12 minutes on stair stepper
50 situps
25 push ups
prayed
read the bible
read my devotion
date with Anna

Total:
36 minutes on elliptical
24 minutes on exercise bike
24 minutes on stair stepper
12 minutes on treadmill
ran 3 miles
300 situps
150 push ups
prayed
read the bible
read my devotion
2 dates with Anna

Weekly Calorie Count:
Sunday: xx
Monday: 2,150 Calories
Tuesday: 2,020 Calories
Wednesday: 2,225 Calories
Thursday:
Friday:
Saturday:

Daily Average: 2,132 Calories.

Still twEATing here.

Day Off

Today, I had a tough time fitting in the gym. I had 2 hours of meetings, plus another hour of having someone shadow me. I needed to get my work done, so no gym. It's a strange feeling. No, it's not laziness. It's making sure that I get my work in as opposed to my workout. It feels like it's been a while since I've missed a workout (well, other than the whole Italy trip). And even more? I'm not that stressed out about it. In reality, I missed out on about 1,000 Calories burned. That's not what is going to sink me. What would sink this week would be to let this day of relaxation stretch into two days, then a week, and then a month. And it starts tonight. I didn't hit the gym today and I'm not out running tonight. But I've eaten really well and I've done some of my situps and push ups. It's been a great day today, because I'm starting to realize that I can sustain this once I get to my target.

Oh, and next week, Anna and I will be starting a run of 60 days where we get to enjoy a Bikram Yoga class twice a week. We bought our yoga mats, and are all ready to go. We got the deal off Living Social, and we're pretty excited! Gotta change up the workouts, you know?

Spilling Hope Update:
Sponsors: Josie ($0.25), Ricky ($0.50), Shelli ($0.25), Kim ($0.25), Ish ($0.25) Thanks Sponsors!!
Total Miles: 24
Total money raised: $136.00
Tuesday:
100 situps
50 push ups
prayed
read the bible
read my devotion
date with Anna

Total:
12 minutes on elliptical
12 minutes on exercise bike
12 minutes on stair stepper
12 minutes on treadmill
ran 3 miles
250 situps
125 push ups
prayed
read the bible
read my devotion
date with Anna

Weekly Calorie Count:
Sunday: xx
Monday: 2,150 Calories
Tuesday: 2,020 Calories
Wednesday:
Thursday:
Friday:
Saturday:

Daily Average: 2,085 Calories.

Still twEATing here.

Quick Weekend and long night

So, it seems like the weekend flew by. Did anyone else notice that?

Saturday morning, Anna went to breakfast with one of her best friends, so I went to Starbuck's with my brother (no worries, I had water). Then I walked the 9 miles to my MIL's condo and met up with Anna and we went out to lunch--just the three of us. After lunch, and some time with my MIL visiting Anna's Uncle's grave, we headed home; we were exhausted. So a lazy night in front of the TV and a two-man slumber party (Anna on the couch and me on the floor) ended our Saturday. Sunday was pretty slow, too. We went to church early to ask some more questions with the Director of Spiritual Discipleship about membership. Church service, lunch at an Indian Buffet, a movie (Kick-Ass...pretty dang fun), and a trip to the store rounded off our out-of-house time for the weekend. Then home and cleaning the house and making lunch for Monday and BED. It was a pretty common weekend for us: a good mixture of out and about and home. But no yard work yet (I think our neighbors must hate us!).

Now Anna is out with one of our sisters-in-law, and I'm bored. I miss Anna (crazy, huh?) I'm trying not to watch TV (Spilling Hope Goal), so I had dinner and now I'm going for that 3-mile run I documented below. Not sure how many runs I'll get in this week--we have a lot of events planed, so my Spilling Hope Sponsors may be off the hook this week.

Spilling Hope Update:
Sponsors: Josie ($0.25), Ricky ($0.50), Shelli ($0.25), Kim ($0.25), Ish ($0.25) Thanks Sponsors!!
Total Miles: 24
Total money raised: $136.00

Up to Monday:
12 minutes on elliptical
12 minutes on exercise bike
12 minutes on stair stepper
12 minutes on treadmill
ran 3 miles
150 situps
75 push ups
prayed
read the bible
read my devotion

Weekly Calorie Count:
Sunday: xx
Monday: 2,150 Calories
Tuesday:
Wednesday:
Thursday:
Friday:
Saturday:

Daily Average: 2,150 Calories.

Still twEATing here.

Week 55

 

Weight: 226.8
Weekly loss: 4.0
Total weight lost: 141.6
Average Weekly Loss: 2.57

Okay, not quite all the gain from my Italy trip, but most of it.  I'd say that at this point in my journey, a 4 pound loss is pretty exciting!  I'm not sure how this will change my next weigh-in, but by the looks of it, I should be able to be under 225 next week.  That would be super cool.  I'd still like (note that this isn't an actual goal, as I try not to do weight-based goals) to hit 215 by my birthday on June 13th.  That is 7 weeks away.  Which would be an average loss of 1.69 pounds a week.  I can totally do that.

Here's to a great week ahead!

Weekly Wrap-up

Lots of walking! But the walk/run tracking app I've been trying to use for my phone has not been the best. I keeps on dropping the GPS signal. I'm not happy about it. It really annoys me, honestly. But I just downloaded another one to try. I'll use it my next couple of times, and see how it does. If it doesn't work out, at least I can keep using my original app and re-draw the map online when I get home. I don't love having to do that, but what are you going to do, right? Any suggestions? I don't have an iPod, so I won't be getting a Nike+, and I don't really want to buy another piece of equipment. Unless I have to.

Spilling Hope Update:
Sponsors: Josie ($0.25), Ricky ($0.50), Shelli ($0.25), Kim ($0.25), Ish ($0.25) Thanks Sponsors!!
Total Miles: 21
Total money raised: $131.50

Saturday:
100 situps
50 push ups
walked 11 miles
prayed
read the bible
read my devotion

Total:
60 minutes on elliptical
60 minutes on exercise bike
60 minutes on stair stepper
60 minutes on treadmill
ran/walked 24 miles
350 situps
175 push ups
prayed
read the bible
read my devotion
2 dates with Anna
fast

Weekly Calorie Count:
Sunday: xx (never counting Sundays again)
Monday: 2,050 Calories
Tuesday: 2,225 Calories
Wednesday: 1,895 2,195 Calories
Thursday: 1,465 Calories
Friday: 2,200 Calories
Saturday: 2,445 Calories

Daily Average: 2,097 Calories.

Follow my Twiet here.

Loss, Love, and Encouragement

Hey everybody. It seems like this is not the year for people. I mean, yes, people have been succeeding in their weight loss journeys. We've had people hit their goals, we've had people join the commmunity, we've had people push through plateaus, and we've had people re-commit to their goals. But we've also had a lot of loss. People have lost their mom, their dad, their uncle, their grandma. And now it's happened again. Another in our community has been hit with extreme loss.

Tyler has just lost his father. Please head on over and share your love. And while you're doing that, call your loved ones and tell them how much you care about them. Hold your close ones closer. And remember that life is short, so take it all in while you can.

This is especially hard for me because Tyler was actually the inspiration for my journey. I have found amazing, loving support in the community other than him, but I still follow his progress and relish in his success and fame. And he has found lots of success--from his local radio and news stations to CNN! He probably will never see this blog, but I want him to know that his loss is our loss (but we'll never know exactly what he's going through).

I'm off to run.

Spilling Hope Update:
Sponsors: Josie ($0.25), Ricky ($0.50), Shelli ($0.25), Kim ($0.25), Ish ($0.25) Thanks Sponsors!!
Total Miles: 10
Total money raised: $115.00

Friday:
12 minutes on elliptical
12 minutes on exercise bike
12 minutes on stair stepper
12 minutes on treadmill
50 situps
25 push ups
ran 3 miles
prayed
read the bible
read my devotion

Total:
60 minutes on elliptical
60 minutes on exercise bike
60 minutes on stair stepper
60 minutes on treadmill
ran/walked 13 miles
250 situps
125 push ups
prayed
read the bible
read my devotion
2 dates with Anna
fast

Weekly Calorie Count:
Sunday: xx (never counting Sundays again)
Monday: 2,050 Calories
Tuesday: 2,225 Calories
Wednesday: 1,895 2,195 Calories
Thursday: 1,465 Calories
Friday: 2,200 Calories
Saturday:

Daily Average: 2,027 Calories.

Follow my Twiet here.

How much a year changes

I know, I do these a lot, but really I still get shocked when I see things like this. My boss at work was showing a new employee some pictures from our events. I work for a company that likes to party. And party hard. So, of course we do Cinco de Mayo. So, my boss was showing this employee some pictures from last year's festivities, and she ran into this picture:


Uh, what?! I immediately showed the picture to Anna, and she asked me how it made me feel. Honestly, I feel mixed emotions. I feel proud of how far I've come--it really is incredible. More than that, though, I feel sad. I have no idea how I let myself go so far; so fat. I mean, seriously. I can't even recognize myself. Here's another picture from that same event:


The main reason I love these pictures is that it helps me to get motivated again. Really, it's super exciting to see how far I've come. And I never want to get that big again. Gross!

What about you?  Do you get excited when you see progress pictures?  How do you keep motivated?

Spilling Hope Update:
Sponsors: Josie ($0.25), Ricky ($0.50), Shelli ($0.25), Kim ($0.25), Ish ($0.25) anyone else?
Total Miles: 7
Total money raised: $110.50

Thursday:
12 minutes on elliptical
12 minutes on exercise bike
12 minutes on stair stepper
12 minutes on treadmill
50 situps
25 push ups
prayed
read the bible
read my devotion
fast

Total:
48 minutes on elliptical
48 minutes on exercise bike
48 minutes on stair stepper
48 minutes on treadmill
ran/walked 10 miles
200 situps
100 push ups
prayed
read the bible
read my devotion
2 dates with Anna
fast

Weekly Calorie Count:
Sunday: xx (never counting Sundays again)
Monday: 2,050 Calories
Tuesday: 2,225 Calories
Wednesday: 1,895 2,195 Calories
Thursday: 1,465 Calories
Friday:
Saturday:

Daily Average: 1,984 Calories.

Back to twEATing here.

Disturbing Browsing

So, a couple of days ago, I read an article about "gainers". Then, one of the blogs I follow, Obesity Panacea gave some more information about the culture that surrounds this insanity. There is a whole group of people out there who's goal it is to gain weight. Yeah, that's right, they want to be 400, 500, 1,000 pounds. And there are plenty of people out there who want to enable these people; and even some others who pay to watch these people eat. It's hard. I want to have compassion for everyone, but it's so difficult. All of us in this community are struggling to lose each and every 1/10 of a pund, and here are people who enjoy the feeling of getting fat. Who are actually sexually aroused touching someone's rolls of fat. I mean everyone is beautiful in his/her own way, but this is ridiculous. And I'm not trying to get on my soapbox.

I spent some time earlier today looking at some of the blogs in this world here and here and here. And wanted to be mad. I wanted to comment and tell them the mistake they were making. But really, I just got sad. And then I got mad. There were people who were complaining that they couldn't reproduce because this quest for obesity had robbed them of their ability to procreate. So sad. But then they started complaning that the medication it would take to be able to have kids wasn't covered my health insurance or medicare. I'm sorry, but my sympathy ended there. They can gain all the weight they want, but when we have to pay for the results of their choices, that's a different matter. Not to mention that some of these "gainers" have kids. What does that say to them? Will they grow up thinking that obesity is good or cool? Or will they even have parents for long? As someone who lost a parent recently--along with many others--I get really mad at the selfishness; think about your kids, think about yourself! For crying out loud. So sad.

Here are some comments from the blogs:

"I hope that readers will realize that "gaining" is just one of many things we humans do to, or with, our bodies. Tattooing, for instance, very popular again. Body piercing, extraordinary hair-dos, exotic ways of clothing and many other things.  One thing that bothers me is, that, what so nicely is called "having extra baggage", is frequently tied to health. When one thinks about it, what is really so unhealthy about being fat?"

"Reading your blog is like reading my own story. My goal was always to be at least 300 pounds. I can totally relate to the wonderful feeling of gaining weight. I felt that it was a desire that others would not understand. On September 15, 2008 I finally reached a long time goal of 250 pounds."

"I am an admirer of large women, and would love to be a feeder someday myself"

Did anyone else read about this sad situation? What were your thoughts?

Spilling Hope Update:
Sponsors: Josie ($0.25), Ricky ($0.50), Shelli ($0.25), Kim ($0.25), anyone else?
Total Miles: 7
Total money raised: $108.75

Wednesday:
12 minutes on elliptical
12 minutes on exercise bike
12 minutes on stair stepper
12 minutes on treadmill
walked 2 miles
50 situps
25 push ups
prayed
read the bible
read my devotion

Total:
36 minutes on elliptical
36 minutes on exercise bike
36 minutes on stair stepper
36 minutes on treadmill
ran/walked 10 miles
150 situps
75 push ups
prayed
read the bible
read my devotion
2 dates with Anna

Weekly Calorie Count:
Sunday: xx (never counting Sundays again)
Monday: 2,050 Calories
Tuesday: 2,225 Calories
Wednesday: 1,895 2,195 Calories
Thursday:
Friday:
Saturday:

Daily Average: 2,157 Calories.

Back to twEATing here.

Happy Birthday

First, I wanted to thank Josie for sponsoring my for the Spilling Hope fundraising. Her $0.25 per mile will do a lot of good. Now, though, it's up to me to make her pay (by making myself pay). One note, too. I'm only going to count my miles outdoors. So the max I think I'll be able to do will be 100 miles. For Josie, that means $25.00 (max). What a blessing. Who else wants to join in? It doesn't have to be $0.25 a mile. It can be $0.10, $0.50, even $1.00. It's your call. I'd love to have your support. We'll work out the payment later--maybe I'll have those who support mail a check or something (not a big fan of Paypal).

On to Anna's birthday. It was really on Sunday, but we celebrated it on Saturday since we had a family dinner to go to on Sunday. I took Anna to Secret Garden Tea Room. We've been to another place up here a few times (Queen Mary's), but we wanted to try other places. This was a great decision! It was delicious and a pretty good price (especially considering that it's Afternoon Tea).


And before you all comment about Anna dragging me to this stuffy, doily place, I love going to afternoon tea! Of course, it's mostly because of the food, but hey--I guess Anna's company is pretty cool, too! It was a lot of food, but I'm glad to say that Anna enjoyed her birthday. Happy birthday, honey!

Tuesday:
12 minutes on elliptical
12 minutes on exercise bike
12 minutes on stair stepper
12 minutes on treadmill
ran 5 miles
50 situps
25 push ups
prayed
read the bible
read my devotion
date with Anna

Total:
24 minutes on elliptical
24 minutes on exercise bike
24 minutes on stair stepper
24 minutes on treadmill
ran 8 miles
100 situps
50 push ups
prayed
read the bible
read my devotion
2 dates with Anna

Weekly Calorie Count:
Sunday: xx (never counting Sundays again)
Monday: 2,050 Calories
Tuesday: 2,225 Calories
Wednesday:
Thursday:
Friday:
Saturday:

Daily Average: 2,138 Calories.

Back to twEATing here.

Spilling Hope

There's a lot that has happened in the past few days: Anna had a birthday, I made up a new dish, and we organized some more Italy pictures. But all that will have to wait. I'll post those later this week.

Yesterday, though, Anna and I went to church (surprise, since it was a Sunday, huh?)--it had been a couple of weeks. I sure missed the church we're currently going to (and considering membership in). Yes, we went to Easter Mass in Venice. And while that was an amazing experience, it's still not the same as our home church. Well, our church is going through an annual program--it's only been a couple of years. And I'm itching to tell you all about it and what we'll be doing to support it, and Water Sunday.



But instead of telling you all the details, I'd suggest that you check out this site. But here's a little 30,000 foot view. The goal of this drive is to fund the creation of at least 10 new borehole wells and continue to support clean water and sanitation projects in the Ntungamo region located south-western Uganda through a partnership with Living Water International. Water projects will be located within close proximity to schools and 100% of funds collected from the 50 Day Challenge (Spilling Hope) will go to the work in the field.

Our church is encouraging us to live simply, give generously, and change lives. I'll be working on the first two goals (with Anna's help) and trust that God will take care of the third. And yes, it just so happens that this meshes well with the new leg of my journey. But I'll be doing more than that for the next 33 days:

Live Simply:
  • No drinks other than water (only tap, no bottled water)
  • Eating out only twice a week
  • Only go shopping at the grocery twice a week
  • Eat leftovers before cooking something new
  • Limit internet useage (outside of work) to 1 hour a day
  • Limit TV watching to an average of 2 hours a day

Give Generously:
  • We'll give $100.00 to Spilling Hope on our own.
  • Also, I'd love to get some kind of fundraising going through the blogosphere. Maybe I can get some sponsors--like $0.10-$0.25 per mile I run in the next 33 days. Any takers? Let's build some wells!

Up to Monday:
12 minutes on elliptical
12 minutes on exercise bike
12 minutes on stair stepper
12 minutes on treadmill
ran 3 miles
50 situps
25 push ups
prayed
read the bible
read my devotion

Weekly Calorie Count:
Sunday: xx (never counting Sundays again)
Monday: 2,050 Calories
Tuesday:
Wednesday:
Thursday:
Friday:
Saturday:

Daily Average: 2,050 Calories.

Back to twEATing here.

Week 54


Weight: 230.8
Weekly gain: 4.2
Total weight lost: 137.6
Average Weekly Loss: 2.55

So, that's the damage.  Not cool.  Of course, it's inflated a little bit.  Heading in to yesterday morning, I was at 227.2.  So, I know this is a lot of water weight, but I'm still not happy.  I fully intend on being back to my weight from last weigh-in next week.  I know it will be a tough go.  But I can and will do it.  It'll take extra workouts and extra vigiliance with the eating.  But I can't let this carry on, you know?  So here we go.  Full speed ahead.  I want to be under 225 by May.  Bummer.  I wanted to be under 220 by May. 

But really?  That 4.2 pound gain was totally worth it!

Quick Post. Tired

Sorry guys! Too tired to really post. Still getting into the swing of things. Should be back to full swing soon.

Have to do a 5k (unofficial) tomorrow. And I get to spend some dedicated time with Anna (her birthday's on Sunday). Need to get some walking in. And some more exercise.

Weigh-in on Sunday probably won't be too great. But I'll deal with that then, right? 

Friday:
12 minutes on elliptical
12 minutes on exercise bike
12 minutes on stair stepper
12 minutes on treadmill
100 situps
30 push ups
prayed
read the bible
read my devotion
30 minutes with God
date with Anna

Total:
24 minutes on elliptical
24 minutes on exercise bike
24 minutes on stair stepper
12 minutes on treadmill
150 situps
55 push ups
prayed
read the bible
read my devotion
30 minutes with God
2 dates with Anna

Weekly Calorie Count:
Sunday:
Monday:
Tuesday:
Wednesday:
Thursday: 2,320 Calories
Friday: 2,135 Calories
Saturday:

Daily Average: 2,228 Calories.

Back to twEATing here.

Back in the Saddle

Okay gang.  It begins here.  I'm back to my usual deal of waking up, going to work, working out on my lunch break, and working out a little more in the evenings.  It's actually really comforting, to be honest.  I really have missed the consistency.  I'm back to not eating past 8.  I'm back to tracking my calories.  It'll probably take me a little while to get back to galloping on the horse my saddle is strapped to.  But I'm thinking that by May, at the latest, I'll be totally great!

I've ordered my Bible-in a Year Book, and have been reading my devotional with...well...devotion (since I've returned).  I'll be having my first real dedicated time with God this evening--which I'm really looking forward to.  Oh, and I'm about 1/2 way through with Mere Christianity. 

I'm loving this next stage.

Thursday:
12 minutes on elliptical
12 minutes on exercise bike
12 minutes on the stair stepper 
100 situps
30 push ups
prayed
read the bible
read my devotion
30 minutes with God
date with Anna

Weekly Calorie Count:
Sunday:
Monday:
Tuesday:
Wednesday:
Thursday: 2,320 Calories
Friday:
Saturday:

Daily Average: 2,320 Calories.

Back to twEATing here.

Our Italy Trip

I've never been good about updating people on my life events.  When I was growing up, we would talk about our day at school with my mom.  My brother would take about 45 minutes to an hour explaining his day.  Me? About 10 minutes.  I'm just not that much of a sharer.  I can spend a whole day with friends, and then when I tell Anna about my time, not remember more than a few snippets.  It's not like I don't like sharing.  It's just that I don't think about it until something or someone reminds me.  You know what I mean?

So, with that being said, here's my short and sweet recap of our trip.

We left from Seattle at about 8 am. 

That's my dad, Anna, and (of course) me.  FYI, we love using the self timer on our camera.  Our flight was at about 11 am.  It was about a 5 hour flight to Chicago (on United), then a 9-10 hour flight to Munich (on Lufthansa), then an hour-long flight to Venice.  After that, we took a bus to the actual town of Venice.  Then took the Vaporetto (water-bus) to Lido, where out hotel was. 

About 20 hours or so after we left, we arrived.  The flights were a mixed bag.  United sucks.  The seats were fine, but the staff wasn't that great.  And they only gave us one drink service.  For a 5 hour flight.  The rest of the legs were amazing.  I can't wait to fly Lufthansa again!  The seats were great, the staff amazing, and the service was even better.  They gave us drinks many times.  And the drinks could be soda, water, wine, beer, alcohol--all free!  And they gave us a dinner and a snack.  And then, even on the short 1-1/2 hour flight, they gave us a snack.  So, to sum it up: United, on a 5 hour flight, gave us a drink (one drink), and Lufthansa, on a 1-1/2 hour flight, gave us a snack and a drink. I hate US carriers.  No wonder they are struggling.  

Anyway, we spent three days in Venice, enjoying good food and lots of walking (though at a very slow pace, due to my dad's knees and hips).  We even got to attend an Easter Mass at St Mark's Cathedral.

Wow.  What an experience.  For all the differences us Protestants have with our Catholic brethren, they sure do know how to put on a service.  The signs asked visitors not to take pictures or video, but I shot a short one with the intention of posting it here.  Then I saw people taking pictures and got frustrated with them.  Thought they were disrespectful.  So, I deleted the video, and our time in the cathedral will forever live in our own memories.

More Venice Pictures:

Then we went out to Morsano--where my great-grandfather was from.  We even were able to take a quick bike ride to the town center. 

And had a nice Easter meal out there.      



We then went to Rome, and got into the apartment that we rented while we were there.  It was awesome.  It was small, old, the bathrooms were horrible, and it was right off of the Campo De Fiori.  We saw lots of sights there, including the Coliseum, The Roman Forum, the Trevi Fountain, Vatican City, and lots of other sites.

Then it was on to Naples, Pompei, Sorrento, and the Amalfi Coast.  It was a long, good trip.  I really enjoyed it. 

I could (and probably should) post more pictures, but I'm already exhausted with typing up this post (which isn't really that long).  But is was a great trip.  Anna planned the whole thing and it was a really well-run trip.  Even with travelling during Easter (with spotty transit and open hours).  I'd let her plan any trip she likes.  She has such an eye for details.  Of course, there was lots of eating and gelato.  Yum!  I weighed myself (as a spot weigh-in) and didn't do too much damage, though I had been running high leading up to our trip. 

I'll be tracking Calories as of tomorrow and will start my workouts again.  I'm also going to be changing my weigh-in day.  It will now be Sunday mornings.  I've noticed that I tend to go a little crazy on the weekends, so in order to limit that, my new day is Sunday.  One less day of indulging.  That's exciting to me.  

So I'm back and ready for the next year of this journey.  I'll be catching up on all your blogs, but it may take me at least a week, so be patient!    

The Next Stage

A little under a year ago, I started this journey.

I weighed in at 368.4 pounds.

I wore size 48 pants.  And had just started wearing 3XL shirts.

I would get winded going up a flight of stairs.

Now, almost a year later, things are much different.

I now weigh 226.6 pounds

I should buy size 34 jeans.  I'm only bringing Large shirts on my trip this week.

And I routinely climb 130 flights of stairs on the stairstepper 12 minutes a day 5 days a week.

What a change in such a short time.

But this blog is about more than just losing weight.  As my header says, this journey is about becoming healthy; communing with God; and fulfilling my obligation as husband, friend, and disciple of Christ.  I've done pretty well on the first criterion (though I still have farther to go).  And I'm making strides on the second two criteria.  So I'm adding more intention to those areas.

I also firmly believe that as I grow in my relationship with God, I will become more capable of a husband, friend, and disciple.  Therefore, I'll be adding a Rule of Life to my...well...life!  At our church, we are focusing on a four stage rule of life:

  1. Scripture Reading
  2. Prayer
  3. Generosity
  4. Service

I have some goals for each stage:

Scripture Reading:


Prayer:

  • I will commit to daily personal and communal time with God.  Right now, although I pray each day, it is usually more of a quick, formulaic thing.  That will not be any longer.  I will take no less than 30 minutes a day to spend time with God.  Each day will consist of an individual prayer activity and some prayer time with Anna, as well.

Generosity:

  • I will spend $40 a month of my "spending" money stocking my car with bottled water and energy bars.  Then, when I'm at an intersection and there's a man (or woman) holding a sign asking for help, I will bless them with some food and drink.
  • I will commit to shopping at thrift stores before buying new--thereby allowing us to have more money available to use for God's work.  Additionally, if I buy something new, I will do my best to donate something to Goodwill.

Service:

  • I'm still fleshing this portion out, but I intend to become a big brother/mentor in the near future.

This Rule of Life addition is in no way meant to be legalistic.  There's no life to be gained from that (in my opinion).  But it is a way to help me get into right relationship with God.  I see it like my exercise plan.  It's not all or nothing.  It started out as a processes--and still is.  There are times I don't make all my goals.  And that's fine.  As long as I fail while trying--instead of failing to try.  The specifics of my Rule of Life, like my exercise and eating habits/goals, are in no way meant to provide the way to live.  They are my way to live, and that's it.  I post these here for nothing other than to let you all know where I'll be going from here.

Now my updates will consist of both ROL (Rule of Life) updates and exercise updates and eating updates.

*whew*

That's it.  Hope I didn't build it up too much.  I am, though, very excited for this next stage in my journey.  What about the rest of you?  How are you caring for your spiritual lives while improving your physical lives?  I know some people take the time to focus on Yoga and Meditation: Kim, Kat, etc...  But how does everybody sustain their spirit?

(Just had to add some words to this post.  When I put it in Word, it showed the word total as 666.  Yikes!  Hehe! Now it's 693.)

Goodbye

FOR NOW!

So, this is it! We're off to Italy for 9 days. Not too much to say in this post. Quick day. We've had lots to get ready for. And we're still packing. Sorry for the short post. We'll be back on the 12th (late at night). So my next full update will be on April 13th. Two Wednesdays away.

There will be no weigh-in tomorrow. Honestly, it's just because I don't think I'll have the time to set up the post tomorrow morning. I'll try to do it, but there are no promises. Please don't take this as a sign that I'm slacking off or that I'm taking it easy. In reality, this journey has always been about finding out how to balance a healthy lifestyle and a full life. This is part of that. I want to make sure that I have a good amount of rest for the trip. So EXCITED to go!!

I'll be posting again, though, tonight with what my additional track for this journey will be. In just a few days, I'll be hitting my one year anniversary on this journey. So, why not add to it, right?

Thursday:
30 minutes on elliptical
15 minutes on exercise bike
50 situps
25 push ups
prayed daily
read the bible daily
date with Anna

Total:
75 minutes on elliptical
45 minutes on stair stepper
60 minutes on exercise bike
300 situps
150 push ups
ran 13 miles
prayed daily
read the bible daily
fast
date with Anna

Weekly Calorie Count:
Saturday: 3,075 Calories
Sunday: 2,215 Calories
Monday: 1,980 Calories
Tuesday: 2,000 Calories
Wednesday: 2,045 Calories
Thursday: 2,225 Calories
Friday:

Daily Average: 2,257 Calories.

Still twEATing here.