365 Days and Counting

Well, I knew it would happen, just not this soon.  I've had an off day.  It started out fine as it was trash day and it went well, so well that we finished in record time: 9:15. I had told Cindy I could drive her to the passport office at SDSU, which I did at 10:30, so I needed to shower.  She wanted to thank me and take me to lunch...this is where my mistake was made. I should have thanked her for the offer, cut didn't.  I had two cheese enchiladas and some rice was just a couple of chips.  I've no idea what the calories were in the meal, but it certainly was not on my diet. Then to make things worse, for whatever ever reason, I was worn out and didn't leave the house again.  I did manage 5 K steps but for the first time didn't go to the gym.  In the big scheme of things, this isn't all that big a deal as I'm sure during the year, I will have missed days, but this one seemed unnecessary.  To add to this, I was hungry all day.  This cou...

Today marks my best day yet for steps with just under 15 K.  The gym was early, and then I walked 3rd St giving out the rents.  I then drove to Vicki, my financial adviser in Mission Valley to sign for my annual retirement check (should arrive in the mail around Feb 20 or so) and then drove to the airport to check out Terminal 1 to be sure there was no second story--there isn't. I then drove to scout possible restaurant choices for dinner Thursday with Cindy, Terry, and Louise.  I found two possible choices: Ozzie's Pizza or the Corvette Diner.  While doing that, I discovered a hidden gem in the Liberty Station Market.  It reminded me of the many markets in Thailand where there are many tiny food outlets (all independents--no franchises) with very individualized tastes. I'll have to keep this in mind for the future.  I dreaded being on my diet and couldn't sample some the places. I did make to Costco and bought some grapes, coffee, Chrystal Lite, and mo...

I got up early and got my workout in so I could be done in time to stop at the market and the bank.  I picked up a new fruit bowl I like and will keep in mind for the future.  It includes melon, blueberries, and raspberries.  I went with Martin to Pechanga for some poker.  I won the first hand with a river straight not another for almost an hour.  I moved seats but that didn't help and I finally lost $140 for the day.  I did manage a $20 win on 9/6 Jacks which helped a little bit.  Playing 2/4 limit simply doesn't win you money the majority of the time.  You need to win a bonus to have a winning day most of the time and on this day I was never even close.  I never that trips even once the whole day.  Put I still had a good time and that's the bottom line. I did manage 1200+ steps for the day and so now my string is around five or six straight days, so hopefully I can keep that up.  Food intake:  fruit bowl (70); omelet (8...

I had a good two hours at the gym from 11 to 1.  The weekends are certainly a lot more crowded than weekdays.  I still needed about a thousand more steps so I walked to the park and back.  The park was packed.  There must have been three or four birthday parties going on.  There were tents, two bouncy houses, and BBQ going on everywhere.  It was rather joyous to see. I'm enjoying reading my National Casino Tour book once again.  It's now been 10 years and even I was surprised at how easy it is to read.  I'll take a small pat on the back for that. I was under 1000 calories today.  It wasn't intentional, it just end up that way.  I had two bananas in the morning (200); my spinach omelet (150); and six chicken nuggets at night (250).  I simply didn't need to eat anything else.  I have no managed to stay away from the popcorn for a couple of days...not that there's anything wrong with it--sort of the perfect snack for me, plent...

It was a good day.  I managed to get 11,000+ steps in with the hour on the treadmill and half hour on the bike along with some walking around the park.  I did look up the whole walk versus jog thing, and as assumed, jogging takes as much as 2 1/2 times more calories as walking.  As was my original plan, I will have to begin incorporating jogging into my routine, especially if I find out I'm not achieving my 10 pounds per month goal.  I will say that I am feeling  a bit thinner, but that just might be the empty stomach.  There certainly isn't any difference in clothing at this moment.  The knees, feet, and legs are all feeling the soreness now.  Usually by now, they have come around but no doubt my advanced age is dictating how well my body recovers.  I've not exceeded my 10,000 step goal for four days in a row and it seems, that will now be a daily priority along with everything else I'm working on. I had my feelings hurt yesterday and it...

Had an excellent night of sleeping catching a good eight hours.  I have to wonder that as much as I am exercising, if that plays a role considering my body is tired.  All of this seems silly considering I have had many, many periods in my life where I have exercised much  more than I have this time.  There was a time I was jogging (note that I never say running as my pace barely makes worthy the word jogging) five miles per day.  The jury is still out if I am going to begin jogging again like that.  I need to do some research on the benefits of jogging versus brisk walking. I do know that my feet and legs are TIRED.  A few hours after my workout, it is tough just getting out of the chair.  However, I have no doubt that this will pass and these old muscles wake up and get back some of the strength they used to have. I am forever guilty about my insane lack of discipline.  The last time I had lost the weight, I threw away all my old fat clo...

On six hours sleep.  I can't help but wonder.  I know of many people that have lived all their lives on six or fewer hours of sleep and are just fine.  Their bodies are used to it.  I could say that I probably live on six hours of sleep about three to four times a week.  I can't remember when I haven't though there have been brief periods where I slept eight to nine hours for a week or more at a time.  The only conclusion that I can come to is that your body will simply let you know. I went to the gym at 4:45 AM and was there for about an hour and a half.  I walked for an hour and then the bike for 30 minutes.  My Fitbit said I made 7200 steps.  After getting  home, I took care of all the morning business, checked in with Cindy and drove out to the zoo to get in the rest of my steps.  They have a new path called Africa Rocks that is simply fabulous.  I'm am so impressed with the zoo and their never ending construction project...

It's Tuesday and that means it's trash day.  I was up very early (another 6 PM to bed and then intermediate sleep after that---I'll need to stop doing that) and hit the gym at 5 AM.  I was really surprised at how many people were there this early.  Of course, many are getting their workout in before going to work, but really...so many people. There's constant news reports about America becoming so fat, but if what I see in all these gyms are any indication, there will be plenty in good shape.  It's all very encouraging.  I did an hour of brisk walking and 20 minutes on the bike.  My Fitbit does not calculate my work on the bike, but I've learned that if I put the watch inside my sock, it does count, so that's something I will have to do for now on.  I'm not sure how much longer I will do the stationary bike, but until and if I begin to jog, I will keep it up...it can't hurt. Because of my workout and trash day pace, I totaled 12,000 + steps.  ...

I need to rethink this whole going to bed early and waking up to do the rounds and go back to sleep.  Too often, I can't get back to sleep for hours.  I'm not sure about my days recently.  I'm finding that I haven't nothing to do, so I watch TV or play on the computer.  I really need to remember that I can go to the zoo, the museums, or just find places to walk.    I did, have a good day at the gym.  I managed my walk for an hour and then 30 minutes on the bike.  There was no jogging today.  The question of if I should even jog comes into play.  I've read and heard many times that walking at a brief pace is just as good.  The jury is still out.  I think I'll just make it a day to day decision. I did see Phantom Thread  today with Daniel Day Lewis.  I certainly found the acting solid and the actress was definitely a yum-yum, but the movie was missing something, 3 1/2 stars. Food intake: salad (100); popcorn (50...

Had an okay day at the gym.  I could only manage 45 minutes on the treadmill and 20 minutes on the bike.  I'm sure my body is beginning to revolt a little bit.  The day was pretty dead as well.  I didn't do much other than try out the VR headset from Christmas, which is bust, and watch TV and work on the computer.  I considered hitting the theaters, but I'll wait until  Monday when the crowds come down.  I did go to the Food4Less market and found a sale on frozen shrimp, so I bought a package.  The store has a lot of good items and I'll need to keep it in mind.  I also bought a shrimp ceveici (sp) that has 210 calories.  It was too spicy for me.  I'll thy the seafood salad next time which 60 more calories.  I picked up a medium mushroom and chicken at Panda Express.  Again, it says 170 calories per serving but don't mention how much a serving is, so I'm going to say 500 calories, though I think that may be over estimat...

It was a good day at the gym with an hour of treadmill.  I started jogging for a minute or two intermediately.  Though I hadn't planned to do this, I decided I was good to go, plus I'm still getting pain in my lower shins and jogging helps keep that in check, for whatever reason. I also did 20 minutes on the stationary bike.  Quite honestly, I'm no sure what good that does, but I'm sure it's good for something...perhaps knees?  My knees are my biggest worry.  I cannot do a squat without aid getting back up.  Of course, I would imagine that when I lose a hundred pounds that my knees wouldn't have to support, I have no doubt that would help; however, I also think this is where my age is really playing a part.  I'm not sure if my knees will ever improve. There's only one way to find out and this December, I will do just that. Speaking of December, my goal is 10 pounds per week.  If that is met, I will have lost 110 pounds in December.  That'...

I only managed a little over 5 hours sleep last night but it didn't seem to effect me too much.  I had a good day.  I got my gym work in, 45 minutes on the treadmill, and 15 minutes on the bike.  For whatever reason, my shins were aching earlier than usual. I went to Best Buy to look at some new head phones.  I'm having the most difficult time finding headphones that give me good sound.  I considered the wireless, but they wouldn't let me hear their quality, and I didn't want to blow $160 on something I may not be happy with.  I took a shot and bought the $30 iPhone headphones.  The sound is better, it's just a matter of them staying in my ears during my workout.  I went to movies and saw The Post , which as advertised was very good.  The kiosk outside the Parkway theaters has a sign saying, "No Movie pass accepted at kiosk."  I ran it through anyway and it worked just fine.  I'll continue to use it there until it really doesn't...

I need to keep in mind that I'm writing about things that happened yesterday...sometimes it can be a bit confusing. I worked out at the 24 Hour Fitness for the first time yesterday and things couldn't have been better.  They have everything that LA Fitness had except the sauna rooms, which is no bid deal.  I worked out for a good hour at 6:30 in the morning for an hour.  I was surprised I walked on the treadmill that long at 3.5.  Of course, I'll be doing this for this and next week.  In February, I will begin working in jogging slowly but surely.  By September, I hope to be jogging 5 miles per day...we shall see.  After returning home, I could certainly feel the balls of my feet, where I usually get blisters, but I could feel them beginning to toughen up.  I look forward to developing calluses on both my feet and the upper thighs, which are scraping together developing a painful rash.  I do know that eventually, they too will callus over i...

Wednesday was an action packed day.  I went to LA Fitness Center and found a poster on the door stating that the facility was closing on January 26th.  I did my walk and bike (about 20 minutes each) and then terminated my membership.  I then took the trolley to SDSU where there was a Passport office after picking up my picture from Costco.  At the Passport office, they told me that I needed to mail in my request; however, if I didn't mind paying the fee and filling out their paperwork, they could do it there.  I did just that.  After all was said and done, it cost me $150.  I don't even know if I will need it in the next ten years, but it's good to have it just in case. I came back and went to the store to get some salad and fixings then headed back to the house. My plans for the movie turned out to be a bust as I needed to help Papa get his truck back and then dinner there. I told my parents about this diet and they were good with me eating less...

Quite of bit done today.  Got up very early but end up feeling okay throughout the day aside from dropping at 6:30 PM.  The trash run went without a hitch finishing at at 9:45. I went to the gym and learned that the place is closing Jan 26.  I got in my workout for the day, 27 minutes on the treadmill and 30 minutes on the bike.  I terminated my membership, but am paid up through the first of February.  I will join 24 hour fitness assuming my membership is free with my medicare card.  It all may have been a good thing as 24 Fitness is here in Santee and I will no longer be paying the $30 per month. Food intake was grapes, entree of mushroom chicken from Panda Express, bag of popcorn and six chicken nuggets.  I believe with all it's still under 1500 calories.  The only suspicious thing for me is that Panda Express claims the mushroom chicken is 270 calories per portion; however, as always the case, they don't explain what a portion is or how ma...

Monday, Monday...so good to me... I finally made it to the gym.  I've had an LA Fitness Center membership but haven't used it since my injury.  It's been a year since I've last been there and so it's about time.  I was disappointed to see that they've cut back on their hours and is now only open from 8 to 8.  I'm guessing this will cost them a lot of customers as when I used to go at 4 or 5 AM there were lots of people there.  I can only assume that they're trying to save on salaries, which is a sign they're in financial trouble.  I'm thinking I should go sign up at 24 Hour Fitness.  Membership is free with my Medicare card.  I didn't do much...walked until my shin muscles ached and biked for 25 minutes.  I will pick up that pace down the line.  Stupidly, I left my Fitbit at home.  Food intake was well within the 1500 calories goal.  Grapes, salad, chicken nuggets, and popcorn.  So far, I'm not feeling missing or ter...

Today I caught up on most of my TV programs that I had missed while on my trip.  I then went to Parkway Plaza to see if my Movie Pass worked.  I chose to see Star Wars  again.  The pass worked perfectly.  I expect I'll be using it a lot.  I would expect for the company to go bankrupt sometime because I just can't imagine their business profile could stand up for this but I have no doubt I'll get my $90 worth long before that. I took my flavored salt substitute with me.  I'm not crazy about the butter flavor, however, to my surprise, when I went into the Walmart, I found they had my Bacon Cheddar flavor, so bought all they had along with a Garlic Parmesan.  Food intake today was a spinach egg white omelet (150); grapes (100); popcorn at the theater (150); a bowl of salad (250) and eight chicken nuggets (500) for a total 1400 calories. Again...that's being liberal with the count.  It was probably less than that.  There were very few ...

I left Laughlin at 3 AM and headed back to Santee.  The traffic was lite and no problems except that for whatever reason I had to make two stops to pee.  I don't remember drinking more than usual.  I can only guess that it has to do with the new diet. In order to use the bathroom at Carl's in Escondido, I needed to purchase something so I bought a steak and egg burrito, which I'll guess is about 500 calories.  After getting home, I unpacked and checked the house and the park and picked up my three packages from the office.  Next month's book, the two charging cables for my Fitbit, and a coffee mug warmer were in the the packages.  The coffee mug warmer's ceramic cover was broken in two places.  I went on Amazon and printed a return label and packaged it to send it back.  They are mailing me a new one.  Returning things to Amazon is a breeze. I tried to order this bacon cheddar popcorn salt but it's considered a pantry  item and you h...

Another solid 8 hours of sleep.  For whatever reason, I’m getting the hours in here at the Tropicana.  I went to the Belle, signed up for the high hand poker game and then went to breakfast.  Once again, vegetable omelet and fruit (500 calories).  I went to the game and today went quite a bit better.  I was catching some cards and at one point was up $60.  However, things started to deteriorate the second hour and I left with a $25 win.  It’s nice to post a win at the poker table.  Considering I didn’t catch any bonuses, I feel pretty good about that.  However, the poker for the trip was a loser—about $70—but for three days of playing, I can live with that. I went to the Riverside and saw MOLLY’S GAME, which was good and then played some Quick Quads.  Again, my hundred was almost gone when I went on a nice roll and with two quad deuces on the final hand, I cashed out a little $20 win. I went over to Harrahs and checked in at...

I have been going to be super early lately, 7 PM and so I'm waking up early.  It seems to suit me.  I'm not sure when I started enjoying this routine, but it just seems I can get much more done very early in the morning than any other time of the day. I finished every thing in the room and drove over to the Colorado Belle and signed up for the high hand table, which turned out to be a good thing as the table end up full with a waiting list.  Before the game began, I went to the Loading Dock for their morning buffet.  Prices went up a dollar to $10.99, still a good price for a great buffet.  I had a vegetable omelet and a bowl of fruit with coffee and orange juice (500 calories).  I did learn a lesson: check the labels before pouring.  I accidentally poured Tabasco sauce on my omelet thinking it was Tapica.  I don't like Tabasco, but I managed. I played in the game.  Things started out well as I was dealt pocket Aces with a KK7 flop. ...

After yesterday's disaster, today was tame in comparison.  I drove to Sam's Town this morning, which is about 90 miles from Laughlin.  I bought a small bowl of grapes to it along the way for breakfast (100 calories).  I swiped my card and got 15X/7X, which is pretty good.  I played a little nickle three play and hit one quad making a couple of bucks before playing in Sam's poker tournament, which has gone up $2 to $25--no biggie. I started out well until after the break when it was no limit.  I made a stupid  move and tried to steal a pot going all in with a 6/8 suited.  That was a mistake as I was called by two and lost. I then went to see The Shape of Water , a movie with a lot of Oscar buzz.  I did enjoy it (more nudity than I anticipated).  I did really enjoy the movie but it simply went over the line in believably a couple of tines.  The performances were wonderful.  I did have a small popcorn, no butter (250 calories). I t...

What a mess today was!  It started out just fine waking up at the Aquarius and checking out before driving over to the Colorado Belle.  When I arrived, there only five people on the list so I signed up and went over to a nickle Keno game and played.  I was up about $8 when they called me to the poker table.  I was up for the first hour and had the high hand until with about 14 minutes left, my boat was beat by a higher one.  The second hour, nothing went well losing some very tough hands and staying in a couple I shouldn't have.  I quit after an $80 loss. I headed back to the Aquarius to play for Terry's points.  The goal was 2000 points.  I sat down at the 8/5 BP triple plays.  After 945 points, my first hundred was gone.  That's actually not too back considering I was being dealt some really bad cards.  However, the next hundred was gone after 1435, and the next after 1798 points.  My fourth hundred was down to $37.50 whe...

Chalk this day up to change.  Weather reports were everywhere talking about a major rain even in San Diego tomorrow.  I decided to take things into my own hands.  I went over and spoke with Cindy (manager of the park) and suggested that rather than collect the trash in the pouring rain, that Jose and I get it this afternoon while it's still dry. This wold mean that I would have to walk the entire park knocking on everyone's door to ask them to put out their trash now.  She agree and I did just that.  About 90% of the residents were home and every one agreed to do it understanding.  I also suggested that Jose work this afternoon (his usual schedule is until noon) and then be given Friday off.  Cindy and Jose agreed.  After all, he doesn't want deal with the rain as well.  So, at noon, we set our with the Bobcat and dumpsters. The entire thing took us until 1:30.  There was only one resident who bitched a little because he wasn't home ...

I'm preparing for tomorrow's trip leaving soon after I do the trash pick up.  The weather is calling for rain, which will be first time it rains during this, plus it means driving in the rain, which is always an adventure.  I did manage to get all the reservations for Jonny's birthday trip.  Three nights at the D and three at the Westgate.  I needed to get my steps and chose to drive over to Parkway Plaza.  I walked around a couple of blocks and inside the mall.  When I finished, I was disappointed that it was only 5K steps.  My feet were already hurting a little bit.  I can feel the area where the blisters usually hit begin, so I decided to stop and continue tomorrow.  All of this will hopefully callus over the area, which is my goal before I begin to jog in a week or so. I stayed on point with the food intake, all veggies and chicken nuggets.  Not in the mood to write much today.  I'll do better later.

I'm starting to think that my body simply wants me to only sleep six hours.  It seems to never fail, regardless when I go to bed, six hours later I wake up.  I honestly have no idea if this is healthy are not.  Research continues to be contradictory.  Food wise, I did stay under the 1500 calories...at least I'm fairly certain.  Book club went well. I made the breakfast meats (bacon and sausage).  Everyone else brought dishes.  I managed to eat within reason having only a dollop of potato, scrambled eggs (with bits of ham), two small cheese quesadillas, and fruit.  Total estimated at 1K.  Salad later that night and some baked chicken nuggets.  If I did over, I don't believe it's much. Book club went very well and everyone seemed to have enjoyed both books.  I'm really glad that I finished them.  I've already ordered the THE SERPENT OF VENICE.  No date for next month's meeting was set.  I did take a long walk arou...

Yesterday, all things considered was a good day.  I managed almost 8K steps and kept well within my 1500 daily caloric intake.  I have almost finished the book, which I will do this morning.  I'm taking this getting back into shape thing very seriously.  Having come off my shoulder injury, I don't want to do anything that's going to cause me the kind of pain I had with that.  I realize my 66 year old body is no longer 26.  However, I know this glob of bones and flesh pretty well.  I know that I can not just start jogging.  This will require baby steps, but I know I will get there.  I've been a yo-yo all my life and this marks the seventh or eighth time I've had to "start over."  My first goal is to get to 10K steps per day on average.  I have to get my feet and my shins into shape first.  I certainly don't want to go through the blisters and cramps I've had in the past. After about two weeks, I will begin to add a slight ...

Another night of sleep of only 5 1/2 hours.  I have no idea is the diet and the amount of sleep is correlated or not, but I do try to sleep longer.  Tossing and turning  in my bed for almost an hour isn't getting me any more sleep and is completely unproductive. I have 150 left in THE ORIGIN.  I must finish it today and begin my analyses paper to share with the group.  I will also need to get to the store and pick up groceries. Yesterday was a good day for the caloric intake and a shit day for the exercise, which was zero.  I have  to do something about my lack of discipline when it comes to that.  I know that it is a critical component to the success of this endeavor.  I spent the majority of the day splitting my time with computer nonsense, reading the book and TV.  I never left the house.  Fruit in the morning, vegetables and chicken nuggets in the afternoon and a salad at night.  I will guess I ate a total of approxim...

Not my best day, but not my worst.  The usual Wednesday dinner was a bust (a good thing as I was expecting that the food served would do my diet a disservice) and I came back home and had my veggies and chicken. The day was spent reading, playing online poker, and a little TV.  I'm enjoying "The Runaways" a lot.  This episode featured Stan Lee's cameo as a limo driver.  My mother is not doing well.  She is in constant pain.  At 92, she has lost most of her intestines, had two broken backs, and so many other ailments, it insane.  She doesn't like life.  I feel mostly for my step-dad, Subby, who has to deal with this every moment.  His life is on complete hold and he nurses her every minute and at 85, he's no spring chicken.  I am now more concerned with him.  I feel so ashamed that I'm actually anxious for my mom to pass so that he can still grab a little life.  He loves to bowl and can't now.  He's strong, but I'm noti...

I need to keep reminding myself that the title (Day 3) is the completed day and that I write on the following one...usually in the morning.  Only six hours of sleep last night.  I've always been a rough sleeper.  There are far too many nights that I can't sleep more than six hours, sometimes less, sometimes more.  Like all men my age, this sleep is interrupted with one or two runs to the bathroom during the night.  Rare is the day when I wake up in the morning with an uninterrupted night of sleep.  When I do get eight hours, it feels luxurious.  Yesterday was a good one in that I got some good exercise picking up the trash around our trailer park getting in and out of the Bobcat to help Jose, our maintenance man as he tosses cans of trash into the dumpster attached to the tractor.  When I first started doing this a year ago, the park was under different ownership and I'd drive the Bobcat and each day there'd be a temporary guy doing the work....

Each post will be to report what happened yesterday and how successful the challenge went or if there were any setbacks. I walked just over 5200 steps.  My goal will be at least 10K per day but I know that I have to do this slowly and gradually.  I expect to be at my goal within two months.  I do feel it in my calves.  I have to pay special attention to not hurt myself so this means a pace that will bring my shins and feet into fitness eventually.  I found that walking to my neighborhood park and back is 2700 steps and walking the perimeter and each street of my trailer park is 2100 steps, good information to know if I'm close to my goal on any given day.  I will be going back to the gym sometime this week and then make it a regular part of my routine, but again, I have to take this carefully.  My "frozen arm" still becomes stiff at times even though the injury took place a year and half ago.  According to what I've read, it's a process that...

As so it begins. I don't expect anyone to read these posts.  They're nothing special.  They will act as a tool for me to get my weight back to where it needs to be.  At 66 years old, I cannot continue at the rate I'm going.  If I don't lose this girth, I will likely be dead within 5 years. By writing down my activities each day along with my food intake, I hope to place the discipline into my head that I stick to this. This morning, January 1, 2018, I weight 297.4 pounds, almost 100 pounds overweight for a six foot man.  In the next year, I hope to lose most of that weight.  I will do it the old fashion way, with diet and exercise.  There will be no trendy diets or drinks.  I expect to eat mostly vegetables and fruits.  I will stop eating starches, breads, butter, and sugar. There will be a caveat:  One day a week, I go to my parents for dinner.  This is a tradition that goes back 40 years.  One evening a week, they mak...